At the Climate, Conflict and Fragility Summit themed: “From Crisis to Resilience: Charting a Path Forward for Nigeria”, Clean Energy Hub alongside partners sought to proffer probable solutions to issues resulting from climate change and frailties that have resulted into conflicts across the Nigerian society.
Organised by Clean Energy Hub in partnership with Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) and Africa Policy Research Institute (APRI), the event held in Abuja on Wednesday, July 31, 2024.
Goodwill messages from Rukayat El’ Rufai were received at the summit as she addressed climate and environmental issues.
She said: “Climate change is not merely an environmental issue but also a catalyst for conflict. Food insecurity remains a constant and demands attention. We must prioritise mitigation and collaborative action.”
Key notes were given by Nurudeen Lemu, Director of Research and Training at Dawah Institute of Nigeria.
Lemu reiterated that “relationship between climate and conflict is so critical and often misunderstood and taken as simple”.
He stressed that it is better to prevent these issues than deal with the consequences thereafter.
“The environment is the canvass for all plans to materialise and when the canvass is threatened, what is the future of your plans?”
He described trees as self-technologies and 3D food printers, stating that “protecting a tree saves the next generation of trees through their seeds so when you cut a branch from a tree, you should know what you are doing”.
On his part, Bishop Mathew Kukah, Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, was quick to point out that it is frailties that bring about conflict and not conflict bringing about frailties.
He also said a lack of knowledge of those put by the government in places to handle climate change is also an issue that must be looked into.
“The problem is that of lack of knowledge and good governance as no one looks at a deserving person to be put into positions to address issues of climate change or conflict.”
He further questioned the authority of the government saying, “Does the Nigerian state command the requisite authority to command the loyalty of the citizens? This is because the state no longer has the moral capacity to question the citizens.”
By Lubem Myaornyi
