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Flagship Sustainable Energy Roadmap for the Caribbean unveiled

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Flagship Sustainable Energy Roadmap for the Caribbean unveiled

The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has received recommendations for reaching an ambitious regional target of 48% renewable energy generation by 2027. The Caribbean Sustainable Energy Roadmap and Strategy (C-SERMS) Baseline Report and Assessment, released on Wednesday, October 28, 2015 by the Worldwatch Institute, also suggests a 33% reduction in the region’s energy intensity. Achieving these sustainable energy goals would result in a 46% decrease in carbon dioxide emissions over the period. The report details a work programme of Priority Initiatives, Policies, Projects, and Activities (PIPPAs) as concrete steps for achieving these ambitious but feasible objectives. Supporting the full report are two slide decks visualising the report’s main findings as well as the energy situations of individual CARICOM Member States.

Alexander Ochs, Director of Climate and Energy at Worldwatch Institute. Photo credit: x2.xingassets.com
Alexander Ochs, Director of Climate and Energy at Worldwatch Institute. Photo credit: x2.xingassets.com

“A month before the milestone United Nations climate summit in Paris, and on the day of the launch of the Caribbean Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, this report leads the way for CARICOM and its Member States to become global sustainable energy leaders,” says Alexander Ochs, Director of Climate and Energy at Worldwatch and lead author of the report. “We were extremely excited two years ago when CARICOM Member States reviewed an early draft of this report at a Meeting of Energy Ministers and agreed on the preliminary goal of a 48% renewable electricity share. Today’s updated and extended report adds energy efficiency and climate mitigation to the equation and is accessible to anyone in the region. It provides the analysis and tools necessary to realise the vision of an economically and environmentally sustainable Caribbean region.”

Caribbean governments are increasingly aware of the enormous financial, environmental, and social costs associated with continued dependence on fossil fuels. Only one CARICOM Member State, Trinidad and Tobago, has substantial fossil fuel resources of its own. All others spend sizable shares of their gross domestic product-including at least a quarter of GDP in Guyana and Montserrat-on imported petroleum products. In Jamaica, the cost of electricity is four times that in the United States. And in Haiti and Suriname, large portions of the population still lack access to modern energy services.

These and other concerns have spurred a broad regional dialogue on improving energy security and independence, fostering sustainable economic growth, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions through the development and efficient use of local and renewable resources. CARICOM has aimed to provide guidance and support for Member States that are willing to transition to more sustainable energy systems. In 2013, the region reached a milestone when it adopted a regional energy policy— CARICOM’s first region-wide agreement on joint energy goals— that included the preliminary 48% renewables target. This commitment has since been lauded by UN Secretary General Ban Ki­-Moon.

“C-SERMS is pivotal to the attainment of the sustainable energy and development goals of the Caribbean Community. CARICOM envisions that implementing the C-SERMS Baseline Report and Assessment advances regional goals whilst simultaneously supporting Member States,” says Devon Gardner, Programme Manager for Energy in the CARICOM Secretariat and Head of the CARICOM Energy Unit. “All CARICOM Members have contributed to this Roadmap and the CARICOM Secretariat is excited to have this first in a series of assessments, which will provide guidance on the vision and strategy for building resilient energy systems within the region.”

Established in 1973, CARICOM is a regional organisation representing 15 Member States: Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago. Despite their diversity, CARICOM Member States, with a total population of over 17 million people, face many shared energy challenges.

For most Caribbean states, inefficient transmission and distribution networks, geographic remoteness, and steep topography increase the high costs of energy systems that rely on fuel imports. The loss of large shares of GDP to energy imports diverts large sums that otherwise could be invested domestically. As a consequence, national debts rise at the expense of a country’s financial ratings, and high electricity tariffs discourage economic development and foreign investment well beyond the energy sector. Additionally, all CARICOM Member States share a particular vulnerability to the environmental and socioeconomic impacts of climate change, caused largely by the burning of fossil fuels. Impacts include sea-level rise, water scarcity, coral bleaching, and increased strength and frequency of tropical storms.

“Caribbean countries are, and increasingly will be, affected greatly by the negative consequences of global climate change,” says Ochs. “They have a strong incentive to demonstrate to other countries that it is possible to reduce climate-altering emissions quickly. But even if the problem of global warming did not exist, and the burning of fossil fuels did not result in extensive local air and water pollution, CARICOM Member States would still have a mandate to transition away from these fuels as swiftly as possible, for reasons of social opportunity, economic competitiveness, and national security. They owe it to their people.”

Significant renewable energy resources exist across the CARICOM region and have yet to be fully harnessed, including biomass, geothermal, hydropower, solar, waste-to-energy, and wind. There are also tremendous opportunities to dramatically improve energy efficiency. However, realising these sustainable energy potentials in the region will require a robust and dynamic framework of policy and legislation that, so far, remains inadequate. Although all CARICOM Member States have national energy strategies in some stage of development or implementation, most of these lack a coherent long-term vision and concrete policies and measures. Efforts so far have been disjointed and incomplete, and they face a variety of technical, financial, institutional, and capacity barriers.

The C-SERMS Baseline Report and Assessment aims to serve as a key planning tool for tackling existing barriers and communicating priorities that allow for a swift transition toward sustainable energy systems in CARICOM Member States. Suggested PIPPAs range from coordinated regional fuel efficiency standards and targeted model legislation on net metering, to the development of regional generation technology risk mitigation funds and country-specific electric system modelling efforts. The report distinguishes actions to be taken at the regional or national levels, or both, and specifies the required timeframes. It also highlights three broad priority areas for future action: transportation, regional energy trade agreements, and the water-energy-food nexus.

“Sustainable, reliable, and affordable energy can be provided throughout the Caribbean, and this report helps us see how,” says Andreas Taeuber, leader of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Technical Assistance (REETA) project, which supports the CARICOM Energy Unit in fulfilling its political mandate. REETA is a project of the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), which has supported the C-SERMS project and it’s Baseline Report from its inception. The Inter-American Development Bank also provided support for the project.

“Through regional collaboration, CARICOM Member States have a tremendous opportunity to spearhead sustainable energy development region-wide,” says Gardner. “Full transformation of the region’s energy sector will be a long-term process, requiring extensive and dedicated collaboration among Member States as well as regional and international actors. The regional approach outlined by C-SERMS ensures that no Member State will travel this path alone, but instead will be supported by a network of actors and institutions, united under a common vision for sustainability.”

The C-SERMS Baseline Report and Assessment is the latest outcome of Worldwatch’s longstanding and intensive engagement in the Caribbean and Central America. The Institute also recently published national sustainable energy roadmaps for the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Jamaica, as well as regional studies of Central America and Latin America and the Caribbean.

Paints in Côte d’Ivoire have high lead levels, study finds

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Paints in Côte d’Ivoire have high lead levels, study finds

Consumers can’t buy safe products because labels lack information about lead levels

The Jeunes Volontaires Pour L’environnement Cote d'Ivoire family. Photo credit: ipen.org
The Jeunes Volontaires Pour L’Environnement Cote d’Ivoire family. Photo credit: ipen.org

A new study on lead in decorative paints in Côte d’Ivoire released on Tuesday by Jeunes Volontaires Pour L’Environnement Cote d’Ivoire, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) based in Abidjan, finds that more than half of the paints analysed have high lead levels and that little has changed since a similar study with similar results was released in 2013. Moreover, even when there are paint brands offering paint with lower levels of lead, consumers have no way of knowing it because none of the 53 paint cans analysed in the study carried information about lead content on the label, The study was released as a part of International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week and is one of four studies being released in Africa on lead in paint.

The results were presented to officials from government, paints manufacturers, funders, CSOs, pediatricians, and scientists at the occasion of the celebration of the International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week organised by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and World Health Organisation (WHO). The study was undertaken from December 2014 to March 2015 with paints commonly used by Ivorian consumers and manufactured at national level.

“The health impacts of lead exposure on young children’s brains are lifelong, irreversible and untreatable,” said Dominique Bally Kpokro, Programme Director of JVE- Cote d’Ivoire. “We must reduce this critical source of lead exposure to young children. A national, mandatory lead standard and regulatory framework for the manufacture, import, export, sale and use of lead paints and products coated with paint is needed to ensure the health and future potential of our children.”

“Due to the alarming situation caused by high levels of lead paint sold on the domestic market, Environmental authorities included the elimination of lead paint as a national priority in the national strategy for chemicals management and registered lead paint as hazardous products to be banned in the draft framework law on chemicals management in Côte d’Ivoire validated at a national workshop held in July 2015,” said Dr Say Martial, SAICM Focal Point and representative of the General Director of Environment of Côte d’Ivoire.

Also, Dr Bitty Marie-Josephe, Director of Hygiene, Environment and Health at the Ministry of Health and AIDS fight, argued that “lead poisoning had become a public health problem in Côte d’Ivoire. Thus, this study realized by JVE Côte d’Ivoire will serve as basis for decisions regard to lead paint regulation by health authorities”.

In 2015 Jeunes Volontaires pour l’Environnement Côte d’Ivoire purchased 53 cans of solvent-based, enamel decorative paint, anticorrosive paint and colored paint to be mixed with white acrylic paint from various stores in different districts in Abidjan. The paints were from 19 brands, both locally produced by five manufacturers and exported in West Africa Countries. All paints were analysed by an accredited laboratory in the United States of America (USA) for their total lead content based on the dry weight of the paint. Key findings include:

  • General Sample Results: Most of the paints analysed had lead levels above 90 ppm, the regulatory standard in many countries (75% of decorative paints; 80% of anti-corrosive paints)
  • Results by Brand: One or more paints from 9 of the 13 brands of decorative paints sampled had lead content above 90 ppm as well as above 600 ppm; the paints from four of the five brands of anti-corrosive paints had lead content above a 90 ppm limit.
  • Extremely High Lead Levels: One or more paints from 8 brands (62%) had lead concentrations higher than 10,000 ppm
  • Paint Colors: Bright colors had the highest lead content. The highest lead content was found in Yellow paints, follow by green paints and red ones.
  • Lead Information on Labels: No paint can label from any brand provided information about the lead content of the paint or lead paint hazards.

The WHO calls lead paint “a major flashpoint” for children’s potential lead poisoning and says that “since the phase-out of leaded petrol, lead paint is one of the largest sources of exposure to lead in children.” Children are exposed to lead, when painted surfaces deteriorate over time and contaminate household dust and soils. Children, ages 0-6, engaging in normal hand-to-mouth behaviors are most at risk of damage to their intelligence and mental development from exposure to lead dust and soil.

JVE – CI began studying the lead content of paints and raising awareness of the hazards of lead paint in 2013, when its first paint analysis showed that the majority of paint analysed, even from major manufacturers, had high lead content. This study shows that many decorative paints on the market in Cote d’Ivoire contain high levels of lead, and no improvement has been seen in lead levels of the decorative paints included in both this and the 2013 study.

Most highly industrial countries adopted laws or regulations to control the lead content of decorative paints—the paints used on the interiors and exte­riors of homes, schools, and other child-occupied facilities—beginning in the 1970s and 1980s. Côte d’Ivoire does not currently have a specific policy or regulation for the content of lead in enamel decorative paints.

Key recommendations made in the report include:

National regulation. National efforts should be encouraged to promote the establishment of appropriate national regulatory frameworks to control the manufacture, import, export, sale and use of lead paints and products coated with lead paints, with priority given to the elimination of lead decorative paints and lead paints for other applications most likely to contribute to child­hood lead exposure.

Public awareness. Given the serious impact childhood lead poisoning has on both an individ­ual and a nation’s future, a public information campaign in Côte d’Ivoire should inform the public about the hazards of lead exposure, especially in children; the presence of paints with high lead content for sale and use on the national market; lead paint as a significant source of childhood lead exposure; and the availability of techni­cally superior and safer alternatives.

Voluntary action by paint manufacturers. Paint manufacturers should act voluntarily to eliminate lead compounds in the formulation of their paints – particularly, their dec­orative paints and paints for other applications likely to contribute to lead exposure in children and others before and after the national lead control legal instruments are in place. That some manufacturers are doing this now indicates that the technology exists in Côte d’Ivoire to make the shift to lead safe products. A best practice book could be realised by manufacturers to inform consumers on how paints are manufactured and how to use them safely.

The paint study was conducted as a part the African Lead Paint Elimination Project, which works with government, the paint industry and the public to raise awareness of the dangers associated with high lead levels in paint. The African Lead Paint Elimination Project is being carried out in four countries (Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Ethiopia and Tanzania) with funding from the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

The UNEP is the Implementing Agency and IPEN is the Executing Agency for this project. IPEN is a network of 700 NGOs in more than 100 countries working for a toxics free future and is a member of the Advisory Committee for the Global Alliance to Eliminate Lead Paint, an activity of UNEP and WHO. The Jeunes Volontaires Pour L’Environnement is responsible for Lead Paint Elimination Project activities in Côte d’Ivoire.

Nigeria begins review of ozone layer protection regulations

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Nigeria begins review of ozone layer protection regulations

Nigeria has initiated moves to protect the environment and restore ozone layer to pre-industrial age level, with the commencement of amendment on the national ozone layer protection regulations and demonstration project for disposal of unwanted Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) in the country.

Deputy Vice Chancellor, Ekiti State University, Prof Ibiyinka Ogunlade (left); UNIDO Country Representative and Regional Director for ECOWAS, Dr. David Tommy; representative of the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Environment, Mr. Theodore Nwaokwe; and a representative of the National Environmental Standards Regulation and Enforcement Agency (NESREA) during the workshop in Lagos, a week ago
Deputy Vice Chancellor, Ekiti State University, Prof Ibiyinka Ogunlade (left); UNIDO Country Representative and Regional Director for ECOWAS, Dr. David Tommy; representative of the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Environment, Mr. Theodore Nwaokwe; and a representative of the National Environmental Standards Regulation and Enforcement Agency (NESREA) during the workshop in Lagos, a week ago

The proposed changes in the National Environmental (Ozone Layer Protection) Regulations (S.I.32 of 2009) will be a mandatory requirements for consumption and disposal of ODS waste and pilot Ozone Depleting Substances Disposal project, as part of Nigeria’s obligation as a member of the Conference of Parties to the Montreal Protocol.

The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) a week ago in Lagos collaborated with the Federal Ministry of Environment and National Environmental Standards Regulation and Enforcement Agency (NESREA) to sensitise stakeholders on changes in the legislation at a daylong workshop.

The Ministry’s permanent secretary, Fatima Nana Mede, in a keynote address at the workshop, noted that amending the national ozone layer protection regulations would enable the country comply with the provisions of the Montreal Protocol.

“It also will enhance national capacity for ozone depleting substances prohibitions, import quota administration, compliance monitoring and ODS waste management,” she said.

She added that the pilot disposal project being implemented in Nigeria would establish a model, which will not only show the best way to manage the unwanted ODS banks in developing countries, but also show how ODS disposal can promote other environmental and climate change issues like energy efficiency, Carbon Market co-financing, among others.

Mede, who was represented by a deputy director, Mr. Theodore Nwaokwe, recalled that Nigeria signed the Vienna Convention on the Protection of the Ozone Layer and the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer in 1998 and also has signed all the related amendments such as the Copenhagen, London, Montreal and Beijing amendments.

She said: “We must recall that the Federal Government has previously successfully implemented a number of projects funded by the Multilateral Fund (MLF). These projects include the ODS phase out programme involving the installation of Ozone friendly equipment or retrofitting old ODS-based equipment to Ozone friendly ones in the affected sectors.

“The sectors include refrigeration manufacturing and servicing, aerosol, foam, solvents, halons, Methyl bromide. It is also important to mention that in implementing MLF-funded projects, Nigeria has collaborated with international agencies and development partners namely UNDP, UNIDO, GTZ Proklima, and The World Bank.”

The government listed other issues relating to Ozone Depleting Substances that are not yet fully addressed at the global level and may pose challenges to the Montreal Protocol in the years ahead to include: compliance and data reporting, exemptions for critical uses, and sustaining the momentum of the total global phase-out needed to ensure protection of the ozone layer. Others are dealing with illegal trade and ensuring that ozone depleting substances for allowed uses are not diverted to illegal uses, monitoring the ozone layer to ensure that it is recovering as expected and effective management of ODS Banks.

While appreciating the concerns of the Secretariat of the Montreal Protocol about the deleterious effects of Ozone Depleting Substances, the government expressed commitment to addressing the issue of ozone layer depletion.

“We will continue to take proactive, appropriate and decisive actions to ensure compliance,” Mede added.

UNIDO Country Representative and Regional Director for ECOWAS, Dr. David Tommy, said: “It is mandatory for Nigeria to reflect in its laws, disposal of waste and it is important for the country to begin conforming to product stewardship where the extended producer responsibility initiative is effected and manufactures and distributors of ODS containing equipment have to initiate buy-back programmes to ensure that products are recycled and disposed satisfactorily.”

He disclosed that UNIDO is working with the country in the identification, aggregation and disposal of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), review and updating legislations on ODS and technological application of methyl formate as an alternative to Hydro chlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs).

UNFCCC to present Aggregation Report of INDCs

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UNFCCC to present Aggregation Report of INDCs
Christiana Figueres, UNFCCC Executive Secretary
Christiana Figueres, UNFCCC Executive Secretary

On Friday, 30. October 2015, 10:00 a.m. CET, the UN Climate Change Secretariat will present the synthesis
report on the aggregate effect of intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs) at a press conference in Berlin, Germany.

INDCs are national climate action plans which have been submitted by governments ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris (30 November to 11 December).

Speaking at the press conference will be Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, and German State Secretary Jochen Flasbarth (German Environment Ministry).

On the deadline day for submission on October1, a total of 146 countries, representing almost 87 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, submitted their intended national climate action plans to the United Nations.

Again, worry over African vultures imminent extinction

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Again, worry over African vultures imminent extinction

Six of Africa’s 11 vulture species – the continent’s largest and most recognisable birds of prey – are now at a higher risk of extinction, according to the latest assessment of birds for the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, carried out by BirdLife International – an IUCN Red List partner.

Dr Julius Arinaitwe, BirdLife International’s Africa Programme Director. Photo credit: aplori.org
Dr Julius Arinaitwe, BirdLife International’s Africa Programme Director. Photo credit: aplori.org

The main causes of the drop in African vulture populations are thought to be indiscriminate poisonings, where the birds are drawn to poisoned baits, use of vulture body parts in traditional medicine, and deliberate targeting by poachers, as the presence of vultures can alert authorities to illegally killed big game carcasses.

Dr Julius Arinaitwe, BirdLife International’s Africa Programme Director, said: “As well as robbing the African skies of one of their most iconic and spectacular groups of birds, the rapid decline of the continent’s vultures has profound consequences for its people – as vultures help stop the spread of diseases by cleaning up rotting carcasses.”

“However, now we are becoming aware of the sheer scale of the declines involved, there is still just enough time for conservationists to work with law-makers, faith-based organisations, government agencies and local people, to make sure there is a future for these magnificent scavengers.”

Worldwide, 40 more bird species are now classified as having a higher risk of extinction in the 2015 Red List. Besides the vultures, these include many wading shorebirds, and other iconic species like Helmeted Hornbill, Swift Parrot, Atlantic Puffin, and European Turtle-dove.

Conversely, 23 species of birds have been downgraded to lower threat categories. In some cases, this reflects a better understanding of how they are faring, but some species have undergone remarkable recoveries as a result of conservation action, including Seychelles Warbler and Chatham Petrel.

“Vultures and other birds play a critical role in maintaining healthy ecosystems,” said Dr Simon Stuart, Chair of the IUCN Species Survival Commission. “Their decline can have serious knock-on effects on other species and the many benefits provided by nature. While it is encouraging to see some positive outcomes of conservation action, this update is an important wake-up call, showing that urgent efforts need to be taken to protect these species.”

The IUCN Red List is regarded as the world’s most comprehensive information source on the conservation status of plant and animal species, and BirdLife International is the official authority for birds.

Lagos water boss resigns, activists call for probe

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Lagos water boss resigns, activists call for probe

Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) has commended Governor Akinwunmi Ambode for playing a pivotal role in spurring controversial former Group Managing Director of the Lagos State Water Corporation (LSWC), Shayo Holloway, to resign his post. The group urged the governor to go beyond merely accepting the resignation of Holloway by probing the management of the agency since 1999.

Shayo Holloway, former managing director of the LSWC. Photo credit: theeagleonline.com.ng
Shayo Holloway, former managing director of the LSWC. Photo credit: theeagleonline.com.ng

According to ERA/FoEN, Holloway quit the LSWC on Friday 16 October 2015 following a strongly-worded query issued by the office of the Head of Service demanding he explain the parlous state of water infrastructure in all parts of Lagos even after receiving huge sums in the last 16 years.

Holloway became head of LSWC in 1999. The agency, apart from budgetary allocations, has attracted loans from the World Bank and international donor agencies to fund water supply expansion schemes such as the Iju, Adiyan, and Ishasi Waterworks, as well as expansion of distribution networks. These loans, running into billions of naira, have reportedly not translated into improved water supply for residents. Over 18 million Lagos residents – about 90 percent – still lack daily access to clean and safe water, exposing citizens to water-borne diseases like cholera.

ERA/FoEN and partners – Corporate Accountability International, Public Services International (PSI), the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE) and a coalition of civil society advocates including Dr. Joe Odumakin, Priscilla Achakpa, and Auwal Rafsanjani, had written to Ambode on 9 October 2015 demanding that he publicly reject the public-private partnership-model (PPP) water privatisation scheme that Holloway was promoting, on the grounds of proven failures across the globe.

Former governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Oba of Lagos, His Royal Highness Rilwanu Akiolu, also received similar letters from the groups, asking that they side with the ordinary citizens of Lagos in rejecting the PPP.

In a statement issued in Lagos, ERA/FoEN described Holloway’s ouster as “a welcome development” which should send a clear message to the World Bank and promoters of PPP-model water privatisation schemes that Lagos citizens will defend their rights to a free gift of nature which water represents.

ERA/FoEN Deputy Director, Akinbode Oluwafemi, said: “We commend Governor Ambode for taking this first step to deliver universal access to water for Lagosians, and the obvious next step is to reject the PPP water privatisation scheme Holloway has been promoting once and for all. Holloway’s resignation will only make sense to Lagos residents if

Media executives commit to tackle marine pollution

Michael Simire
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Media executives commit to tackle marine pollution

A team of environmental journalists who participated in the Abidjan Convention (ABC) workshop that focused on Marine Litter has resolved to step up the fight against marine pollution which is increasingly becoming a major threat to African and global aquatic ecosystems.

Marine litter in Abidjan, Ivory Coast
Marine litter in Abidjan, Ivory Coast

At the close of a three-day forum at the Ivorian capital city, the journalists in a three-point declaration committed individually and collectively to continue to disseminate and share information pertaining to the marine and coastal environment in the Abidjan Convention area and to the Abidjan Convention in particular, including problem of marine litter.

They also resolved to share knowledge, expertise and ideas with one another on a regular basis to further this individual and collective commitment and to encourage a wider dissemination of information.

“We commit to engaging ourselves with local, national and international partners to encourage dissemination of the information pertaining to the marine and coastal environment in the Abidjan Convention area and to the Abidjan Convention in particular, including marine litter,” they declared, adding: “We will work together to encourage better positive decision making”.

Participants at the workshop with officials of the Abidjan Convention
Participants at the workshop with officials of the Abidjan Convention

Sponsored by the Swedish government and hosted by ABC Secretariat of UNEP, the workshop was the second in a series that began in December 2013, conducted by Canadian environmental journalist and communications consultant, David Israelson, with the assistance, support and participation of the Secretariat.

A field trip to the fishing habour in Abidjan during which Mr. Anatolek K. Koussi, Head of the Environmental Department, conducted the journalists around the port, formed part of the tanning workshop.

According to him, the Port Authority of Abidjan is intensifying efforts towards addressing marine littering in the port area, as the problem becomes a major concern for the port authorities.

Abou Bamba, Regional Coordinator, Abidjan Convention/UNEP (left) with Olubusiyi Sarr, Assistant Coordinator for Communications, Partnerships and Fundraising Division of Environmental Policy Implementation, Abidjan Convention/UNEP
Abou Bamba, Regional Coordinator, Abidjan Convention/UNEP (left), with Olubusiyi Sarr, Assistant Coordinator for Communications,
Partnerships and Fundraising
Division of Environmental Policy Implementation, Abidjan Convention/UNEP

Litter debris of plastics and among other types of waste comes from all parts of the districts and sediment at the ports during high tide. Port Autonomy D`Abidjan is doing its best within its institutional mandate to manage the uncontrolled flooding waste, Koussi told the visiting team of journalists. The port authorities are doing their best to stem the tide in terms of solid and liquid waste management. Plans are far afoot, Kouassi disclosed, to establish a liquid waste processing and recycling facility in the port to address the discharge of waste oil from ships.

The construction of a container terminal and an enclave within the port for private companies engaged in processing and other fishing industry related ventures are also to be carried out under a port expansion project.

Nnimmo Bassey: How pollution has stolen our mothers

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Nnimmo Bassey: How pollution has stolen our mothers

Nnimmo Bassey, Director, Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), at the recent workshop (in Bori, Ogoni, Rivers State, Nigeria) on “Building Community Resilience towards the Implementation of the UNEP Report” says that women must be fully involved in monitoring the process and be watchdogs over the environment, especially the clean-up of Ogoniland

Nnimmo Bassey, Director, Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF)
Nnimmo Bassey, Director, Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF)

A Garden of Hope was planted at the Ken Saro-Wiwa Peace Centre, the premises of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People, in July 2015. Present at that notable occasion was Vandana Shiva who is an esteemed Fellow of HOMEF’s Sustainability Academy, also the President of MOSOP, Legborsi Saro Pyagbara, among other respected leaders. It was a gathering of Ogoni women, deliberating on strategies to protect their seeds in a hostile environment and to stand as ecological defenders. Now, before Vandana Shiva spoke, we had an interactive session during which one of the Ladies present said she had to tell us why there were no old women amongst them. It was a question on our minds, a question we had all wanted to ask, so her offer was most welcome. She simply stated, “Pollution has stolen our mothers.”

That was a pregnant statement, a great metaphor of the reality of the impact of hydrocarbon pollution in Ogoniland. This single statement explains the carnival of funerals of young persons in these parts, as Comrade Celestine Akpobari often describes it. Apparently pollution has not only stolen the mothers, but also the prospects of regeneration for many, add to these also that it has been said that incidents of ladies experiencing ‘menopause’ well before the age of forty is on the increase in Ogoniland.

If this the environmental situation of Ogoniland, then, Were Ken Saro-Wiwa and MOSOP right when they began intense campaigns from early 1990s for the clean-up of Ogoniland? Were the Ogoni people right to raise so many questions?

The Assessment of the Environment of Ogoniland as carried out by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) handed to the Federal Government on 4 August 2011 was an answer to the many questions that Ogoni people had been asking. Today we have the word of the President that the clean-up of Ogoniland will be fast tracked. As we speak, it will soon be two months since that promise was made and it will be unwise for us to not utilise the hiatus and prepare for the implementation of the answer. Someone once said that the “Unquestioned answers are more dangerous than unanswered questions.”

We are not gathered to question the UNEP Report, but we will interrogate our readiness to engage with the processes and institutions being set up to bring our answers into effect. First, we will assure ourselves that the implementation of the UNEP report is a lifeline that must be unreservedly grabbed. Anything to slow or abort the process should be seen as an attempt to keep the people trapped in the death-grip of hydrocarbon pollution. The pledge to fast track the clean-up is a clear answer as to whether the clean-up would ever happen. With two months gone with no concrete actions yet, we have reasons to raise new questions as to when the clean-up would take off in earnest.

Women must be fully involved in monitoring the process and be watchdogs over the environment. We recall that in August 2014 some of you agreed to be a part of the Ogoni Women as Ecological Defenders (OWED); well, now is the time to step up the network. Pollution must no longer be allowed to steal our mothers.

We will also use this training programme to review the answers and recommendations made by UNEP, we will share knowledge on environmental health monitoring and resolve to work together to ensure that the restoration of Ogoni environment, births the hope that the highly polluted environments elsewhere in the Niger Delta and all over Nigeria will be equally cleaned up.

In a few days the 10th of November will roll in. For lovers of environmental justice, it is the Day of Infamy and a Day of Rage. That will be the 20th anniversary of the martyrdom of iconic Ogoni leaders – Ken Saro‐Wiwa, Saturday Dobee, Nordu Eawo, Daniel Gbooko, Paul Levera, Felix Naute, Baribor Bera, Barinem Kiobel and John Kpuine. Besides these nine mena, other noble Ogoni leaders and peoples lost their lives in the continued struggle for a safe Ogoni environment. It has been a hard road to travel in the struggle against the power of capital in the shape of entrenched polluting oil companies.

A successful clean-up of the Ogoni environment will attest to the fact that the struggle for a clean environment is not a criminal desire, but a necessity, one that we must all demand and contribute to.

COP 21: Concern over France visa, fees in Nigeria

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COP 21: Concern over France visa, fees in Nigeria

As preparations for the twenty-first session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) reach a feverish peak, prospective participants from Nigeria have been told in clear terms by the Embassy of France in (Abuja and Consulate in Lagos) Nigeria that visa issuance is only contingent upon the payment of visa consultancy and processing fees. This directive, according to observers, is a contravention of the principles of the Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Manuel Valls, France's Prime Minister. Photo credit: Christophe Ena/ AP
Manuel Valls, France’s Prime Minister. Photo credit: Christophe Ena/ AP

Participants from over 196 countries are expected to converge on Paris, France this December for crunch climate talks with a view to adopting a new global climate treaty capable of lowering global temperatures and halting further slides into dangerous thresholds of climate vulnerability.

An information note published on the conference organisers’ website reads: “For holders of an ordinary passport, obtaining a short-stay visa to France is subject to a fee of €60 payable in local currency, in addition to the fees charged in the relevant countries by the external service provider. Persons accredited by the United Nations to attend COP21/CMP11 are exonerated from these charges on presentation of their accreditation letter.”

Duly accredited participants from Nigeria including civil society leaders and journalists have condemned the directive by the French embassy in Nigeria and are calling for a policy reversal by the appropriate authorities.

Tina Armstrong Ogbonna, an accredited journalist to the conference, says: “This action by the French Embassy in Nigeria is a direct affront on the integrity of Nigerians and a baseless contravention of UNFCCC protocol governing issuance of visas to COP participants.

“We have attended UNFCCC conferences in several European countries with noone asking us for visa fees so why is France different?” she wondered.

Stephen Onuche, an accredited civil society observer to the conference, recalls: “This action by the French Embassy in Nigeria is pure extortion and manipulation of environmentally conscious Nigerians to achieve a pre-determined objective.

“I was asked to pay N4,500 (€20) as visa interview booking fee to VFS, a consulting firm approved by the embassy, and when I was eventually interviewed at the embassy premises in Abuja, the visa officer pointedly asked me to pay N13,500 (€60) to their cashier if I ever wanted to collect the visa.

“If the French Embassy in Nigeria is broke and in urgent need of funds, they should say so openly and not use UNFCCC conference hosting right as a smokescreen to fleece hapless Nigerians,” he added.

For another Nigerian journalist who prefers to remain anonymous for now, his experience with the French Consulate in Lagos and their accredited visa agents, VFS, leaves much to be desired.

He says: “After paying N20,420 (about €91) and waiting for several weeks, I was issued a visa that is valid from 12/10/2015 to 11/11/2015 even when my UNFCCC accreditation letter, flight ticket, and travel insurance reads 30th November to 16th December 2015!

“As it is now, the French Consulate has succeeded in issuing a visa that is useless to me. I wonder if my application documents were even looked at before the visa was issued,” he added.

Efforts to get the official position of the French Embassy failed as mails to George Vanin, the Embassy’s Head of Press and Communication, were never replied and neither were calls returned. Similar efforts to get the views of the Consul General in Lagos were fruitless as the Secretary switched off all communication lines with the consulate.

Upon investigation by ClimateReporters, it was discovered that €80 is the blanket fee the embassy charges all conference-related visa requests it receives at both Abuja and Lagos centres. A source at the embassy who craved anonymity revealed that the decision to extend this fee to all UNFCCC accredited participants from Nigeria is part of the embassy’s resolve to stamp out corruption from its visa issuance processes in Nigeria.

“You know, our former Consul General, François Sastourné and his deputy, were implicated in a visa racketeering scam which led to their replacement earlier this year so the Embassy is very wary of giving directives on no-visa fees for certain category of conference participants as this may be abused by embassy staff,” the source chipped in.

Over the years, Nigeria’s participation in international meetings has come under global spotlight for varying reasons ranging from having the largest official delegations at UN conferences to reserving the most expensive hotels for official government delegates.

It will be recalled also that many Nigerian CSO delegates and journalists accredited to participate in the UNFCCC 19th Conference of Parties (COP 19) which held in Warsaw, Poland were denied visas by the Polish Embassy in Nigeria for reasons, many termed as ridiculous and racist-inclined.

By Ezekiel Akor (ClimateReporters)

World Polio Day: Nigeria has brought Africa closer to being certified polio-free

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World Polio Day: Nigeria has brought Africa closer to being certified polio-free

Nigeria’s remarkable achievement has brought the country and the African region closer than ever to being certified polio-free, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Friday, October 23 on the eve of the World Polio Day.

Polio immunisation. Photo credit: comminit.com
Polio immunisation. Photo credit: comminit.com

Just three years ago, Nigeria was the reservoir of more than half of all polio cases in the world. This year, for the first time in history, Nigeria succeeded in interrupting transmission of wild poliovirus and, last month, it was removed from the list of polio endemic countries.

The UN organisation made these submissions in a press statement, even as it emphasised that never before in the history of polio have so few children in so few countries contracted the crippling virus.

“But we cannot rest until the number of cases is zero,” insists UNICEF.

“Progress to end polio is real and dramatic, with now just two countries in the world where the wild poliovirus has never been interrupted: Afghanistan and Pakistan,” said Peter Crowley, head of the Polio Unit at UNICEF. “But – and it’s a big but – until all children everywhere are consistently and routinely immunised against polio, the threat remains. We cannot let down our guard; we have to keep going until there is not a single child anywhere who remains unvaccinated.”

Peter Crowley, head of the Polio Unit at UNICEF. Photo credit: en.mercopress.com
Peter Crowley, head of the Polio Unit at UNICEF. Photo credit: en.mercopress.com

In India, where thousands of children once suffered from polio-induced paralysis each year, there have been no cases in four years.  Globally there have been just 51 cases of wild polio virus since the beginning of 2015, compared with 242 wild polio cases for 2014.

These successes, according to Crowley, are a result of political will and government leadership in affected countries; the strong mobilisation and engagement of communities; the courage and commitment of front-line workers; and the combined, coordinated efforts of the partners of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative – the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organisation, Rotary International, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and UNICEF.

As part of its contribution to this Initiative, UNICEF delivered 1.7 billion doses of vaccine in 2014 and supported the training of tens of thousands of front-line workers in communities from Karachi in Pakistan to Kano State in Nigeria, helping to build trust in the vaccine among parents and communities. Other success factors have been the integration of additional life-saving interventions for children such as routine immunisation, nutrition, handwashing with soap, and breastfeeding, into polio campaigns, particularly in the most under-served and high-risk areas.

Despite this progress, recent vaccine-derived poliovirus outbreaks in countries like Lao-PDR, Ukraine, Guinea and Madagascar have underscored the risks that many countries continue to face due to low routine immunisation coverage. These outbreaks serve as a reminder of the vital need for intensified efforts to strengthen routine immunisation systems and address disparities in children’s access to basic health services. In Ukraine, for example, fewer than 14 per cent of children are immunised against polio.

“We aim to bring a global halt to polio transmission by this time next year, but the only way to do this is for countries with low vaccination dates to re-double their efforts to reach every child, wherever they are and no matter how hard this may be,” said Crowley.

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