The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria, has raised an alarm over rising deaths associated with environmentally-unfriendly domestic cooking practices that cause indoor air pollution and climate change.

Speaking at an exhibition in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, recently, to promote the use of energy-efficient cook stoves in the Niger Delta, Managing Director, SPDC, Mutiu Sunmonu, said that “about 90million people and around 70 per cent of the rural population expose themselves to large concentration of toxins released from burning fuels occasioned by the use of smoke-emitting stoves.”

Represented by Geo Solutions Manager, Nedo Osayande, Sunmonu said that “Nigeria experiences the highest number of smoke-related deaths in Africa, after malaria and HIV/AIDS, killing some 90,000 persons per annum, 85 per cent of them women and children.”

The managing director explained that it was to curb this menace that Shell launched the Global Alliance for Clean Cook Stoves in 2010, in collaboration with Shell Foundation, numerous United States agencies, and non-governmental organisations and is investing to develop improved cook stove standards and support local businesses in building and selling sustainable fuel efficient stoves to 10million desiring Nigerians by 2020.

Group General Manager, National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), Morrison Fiddi, expressed delight that SPDC was partnering with relevant stakeholders to promote the deployment of clean energy cook stoves in the Niger Delta to reduce the rising spate of deaths related to traditional domestic cooking practices.

Represented by Safiya Hamisu, Fiddi said NAPIMS would do everything within its powers to encourage responsible corporate organisations to invest in clean energy initiatives that would enhance viable economic opportunities for the people and promote environmental sustainability.

In his remarks, Coordinator, Nigerian Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, Dr Ewah Eleri, said with about 50.3million Nigerians without electricity, and cost of wood for cooking taking off some 11 per cent of food budget from families daily, it was vital to save more than 102million Nigerians from indoor air pollution-related deaths.

Country Representative, World Health Organisation, Dr Emmanuel Musa, said with over 600million in Africa using biomass for daily food preparation, and 400,000 dying from effects of that activity, the body was working with partners to invest $250million to create a thriving global market for clean cook stoves to reduce the scourge.

Musa said already, the World Bank had spent $1.189billion in 20 years to fund initiatives to encourage household clean energy access across the world, saying that with three billion people burning 730 tonnes of biomass, resulting in two million deaths each year, and one billion tonnes of carbon dioxide emission, the world needs urgent action to end the menace.

Also speaking, Shell’s Regional Health Manager, Dr Babatunde Fakunle, said the forum was aimed at raising awareness on the dangers inherent in cooking in the traditional way with biomass fuels, and to bring manufacturers of clean cook stoves together with potential end-users, distributors, financiers and other stakeholders in the value chain to share ideas on how to push the agenda of reducing indoor air pollution to improve quality of lives of the most vulnerable people.