Two civil society organisations (CSOs) in Nigeria, the Youth and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria) and Kebetkache Centre for Women Development, have marched in support of the ongoing “Global Wave of Hunger Strike on Climate Action”.
Some concerned CSOs and citizens across the globe joined the largest ever coordinated Global Wave of Climate Action with an international hunger strike in its core, aimed at ending political inaction, ineptitude and snail-paced measures towards addressing the issue of climate change and global warming.
The action which started on November 1, 2023 will last till December 12, 2023 to call on governments to implement policies geared towards addressing climate change, especially the Document of the Paris Agreement at the Conference of Parties (COP28), which is slated to hold in less than three weeks’ time in Dubai.
During the march yesterday, the CSOs carried placards with inscriptions such as: “Global Wave of Hunger Strike for Climate: We Stand in Solidarity;” “Act Now, Save the Planet”; “Climate Issues: We want action, we want change; Climate Change”; “Not taking Action is a Big Risk”; “We demand Action for cleaner Environment”; “Climate change contributes to flooding”; “COP28: World Leaders Address Climate issues; President Tinubu take action on Climate Issues; “President Tinubu take action on Environmental Issues”; “Climate Change Affect Women Health” and “Climate Change Affect Women livelihood”.
The executive director, YEAC-Nigeria, Fyneface Dumnamene, who addressed journalists during the march in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, said the action is to draw federal government’s attention and to chart a course for Nigeria as the conference begins.
He said, “Today in Port Harcourt, Rivers State Nigeria, we are hunger striking. We’ve decided to go without food to call our leaders to take action concerning climate change as they gather in Dubai for the Conference of Parties (COP28).
“Climate change is affecting people generally, it’s affecting people in Nigeria, it’s affecting people in and around the world and the impact of climate change is very heavy on the people and we are trying to say that our leaders should take action to give us a safer earth. They should take action to address the issue of climate change.”
Also, the programme officer of Kebetkache Women Development and Resource Centre, Idongesit Smart, lamented the devastating effect of climate change on women.
She said: “In the Niger Delta, our terrain is peculiar and our livelihood, especially that of women depend on the environment. Niger Delta women are known to be fisher folks and farmers. But if you look at the issues surrounding our environment you will see that women livelihood has been automatically destroyed as a result of climate change.”
On her part, a volunteer with YEAC-Nigeria, Onuoha Oloachi, said climate change and environmental pollution has resulted in health issues and crime among youths who should ordinarily be fishermen or farmers.
“In the Niger Delta the constant gas flaring has brought about environmental degradation. Our youths and children are going through diverse health challenges and we know to get drugs is quite expensive. Then the flooding in the riverine areas,” she said.
