The North East Development Commission (NEDC) has commenced a two-day training of 50 rural women in Borno on how to use energy efficient stoves.
In his message at the opening ceremony of the training on Thursday in Maiduguri, the Managing Director of NEDC, Mohammed Alkali said the measure was part of the commission’s effort to enlighten the public on dangers of climate change and measures to mitigate it.
Alkali observed that northeast exemplified a typical extreme case of the country’s version of climate change, reveling in ecological imbalance accompanied with devastating consequences.
He noted that northeast is grappling with an unprecedented number of “climate induced migrations” courtesy of the multifaceted climate change and its palpable effects; ranging from desertification, drought, flooding and the near disappearance of the Lake Chad basin – which all put the region in a dire strait.
“We are seeing the effects of climate change that has exacerbated different conflicts in the North East, from the insurgency to communal conflicts over the years.
“The drying up of the Lake Chad, the southward expansion of the Sahara Desert, floods being experienced across many states, menace of the herdsmen/farmers clashes necessitated by the diminishing availability of forests and grazing lands, are all obvious problems associated with climate change in the region.”
Also speaking, a director with Lake Chad Research Institute, Maiduguri handling the training, Hajiya Falmata Mustafa said the women would be sensitized on climate change and use of energy efficient stoves.
Mustafa said that at the end of the training, they would be provided with a fuel-efficient stove that has 43 per cent thermal efficiency.
Mustafa urged Borno Government and other stakeholders to provide such stoves to the populace to reduce environmental pollution and deforestation.
A trainee, Talatu Dibal lauded NEDC and Borno government for the training which she said has provided them the opportunity to know more on climate change and measures needed to mitigate it.
