Group Lists Ways To Reduce Emissions

Efficiency and good governance are guiding principles to Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD).

The national coordinator of REDD, Mr Salisu Dahiru made this known in an interview with the Press recently.

Dahiru expressed regrets that professionals had low knowledge and awareness of REDD and Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) institutional capacity.

“Government must urgently introduce policy, regulation, guideline and scale up capacity building at the national, state and local government levels on REDD,’’ Dahiru said

He added that the promotion of investment in greening the economy was imperative for the country’s development, adding that it would be geared towards climate change mitigation.

He said that agreement made during CoP 16 Cancun in 2010 was that the scope of REDD would cover areas such as reducing emissions from deforestation.

The national coordinator said that REDD initiative and enhancement of carbon stocks in developing countries was a collaborative programme of UN agencies, such as UNDP, UNEP and FAO.

He, therefore, said that the CDM, combined with REDD, would help mitigate climate change in Nigeria.

Dahiru explained that CDM protocol allowed a country with an emission reduction commitment to implement an emission reduction project in developing countries, adding that such projects could earn sealable Certified Emission Reduction credits.

It would be recalled  that REDD provides supportive incentives to tropical developing countries for the protection and conservation of their standing natural forests.

It contributes to mitigating climate change and promoting sustainable livelihoods for forest dependent communities.