Environment
Climate Change: Senate Seeks Broader Action To Tackle Gas Emission
President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, last Tuesday called for broader action to reduce gas emission, being one of the major pollutants contributing to climate change in Nigeria.
Lawan made the call at the opening of a two-day National Green Summit on climate change organised by the Senate Committee on Ecology and Climate Change in Port Harcourt.
The theme of the event is “Collective Action for Gas Emission Reduction and Climate Change Mitigation in Nigeria: A Call to Action.”
Represented by Sen. Frank Ibezim, Imo North Senatorial District, Lawan said the Federal Government was fully focused on tackling climate change head-on, and as such, had set its zero emissions target by 2060.
“So, I am pleased to be part of this summit organised as an interactive platform for stakeholders in the private and public sectors, to engage on the critical issue of climate change.
“The interaction is coming at a time of increasing need for greater attention to questions about our environment, the importance of gas and the need to develop a carbon market framework.
“The development of a framework is part of a continuing quest to harness the benefits of nature to improve living standards,” he said.
Lawan said the summit would also discuss and proffer solutions on how to reduce greenhouse gas emission in line with the National Determined Contributions.
According to him, the summit will also look into the inclusion of the United Nations Framework Conventions on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the National Environmental Policy (NEC), and the Paris Rulebook from COP 26.
“Examining possibilities from these efforts is helpful to growing our scope of actions; trusting in our collective ability to expand our understanding and charting new frontiers towards initiating new or more policy frameworks.
“The summit will subject issues to further technical scrutiny, before a possible recourse to the legislature either to enhance the Climate Change Act or to imagine future regulatory mechanisms.
“These endeavours amount to prioritising consultations, involvements and inclusions in both climate change governance and matters that have short, medium and long-term implications for the people and society,” he added.
The senate president said the legislature was looking forward to receiving and deliberating on resolutions adopted at the two-day summit, to chart a better climate change framework.
On his part, Sen. Lawal Anka, Chairman, Senate Committee on Ecology and Climate Change, said that Nigeria was currently ranked among the 10 highest gas emitting countries in the world.
He said the country had been hard-hit by climate change as witnessed in the rapidly drying of the Lake Chad Basin as well as the climate-induced conflicts in the country.
“So, this summit will harness ideas on possible legislative interventions, to ensure that Nigeria meets her commitments under the Paris agreement on gas emission reduction.
“We have assembled eminent scholars and practitioners, captains of relevant industries, relevant agencies of government, civil society groups, and other stakeholders to brainstorm on the various sub-themes of the summit,” he said. (NAN)
President, Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Mrs Margaret Oguntala, has inaugurated the construction of 18 units residential terrace in highbrow Alausa area of Lagos toward bridging the nation’s shelter gap.
Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation has launched the 1GOV Enterprise Content Management System (ECMS) to enhance digital governance and improve service delivery.
The launch, held on Thursday in Abuja, marks the ministry’s transition from paper-based operations to a smart, integrated and technology-driven work environment.
The Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof. Joseph Utsev, said the deployment aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
Utsev said the system would improve data management, streamline workflows and strengthen transparency and accountability across the ministry.
According to him, the ECMS will enhance productivity, preserve institutional memory and reduce operational costs in the ministry.
Launching the platform, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack, said the initiative is a major step in public sector reform.
She said the ministry’s mandate affects Nigerians through water supply, sanitation, irrigation, river basin development and climate resilience programmes.
Walson-Jack said the 1GOV ECMS enables secure digital records management, automated workflows, electronic approvals and real-time collaboration across MDAs.
She added that the deployment aligns with the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 2021–2025 and the directive for full digitalisation by December 2025.
“Effective governance cannot afford delays caused by manual bottlenecks or avoidable inefficiencies,” she said.
She directed that all official correspondence in the ministry must henceforth be processed through approved digital registry channels.
In her remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Dr Emanso Umobong, said the system would eliminate workflow inefficiencies and improve service delivery.
She urged staff to fully adopt the platform and engage in continuous capacity building.
Research shows that local communities and citizens living at the grassroots, particularly women, are directly impacted by the environmental degradation, flooding and others that result from these manifestations.
In the light of this, non-governmental organisation, Ese Usamali Foundation For Rural Development (EUFORDe), has held a forum for women and other members of oil impacted communities, tagged: ‘Voices from the Grassroots,’ and aimed at building their resilience and mitigation efforts against climate change and environmental degradation
The forum, with the theme: ‘Building Resilience for Oil Spill Impacted Ahoada Communities,’ organised with support from Global Green Grants, was held in Ahoada Community, Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State, on December 5, 2025.
Executive Director of Ese Usamali Foundation For Rural Development, Mercy Elemchukwu-James, said women are at the forefront of efforts to mitigate the impact of climate change and environmental degradation.
The event, therefore, was “designed for community women impacted by oil spills, flooding and other environmental degradation,” she said.
Community women were enlightened by resource persons on new opportunities for sustainable agricultural practices and water management techniques that cushion the impact of oil spills.
Lectures were also delivered on Self-care and Trauma-care, with focus on physical and mental health of the population, and increasing access to health-related resources and services; as well as on Food security and women’s critical role in decision making in oil spill and flood situations in communities
Elemchukwu-James pointed out that the event created a forum for stakeholders, civil society actors and others to dialogue on measures at advancing inclusive and sustainable livelihoods of community women.
She stressed the need for collaborative efforts towards achieving mitigation efforts, while underscoring EUFORDe’s commitment to “fostering partnerships as a critical driver for achieving a healthy community and sustainable development.”
Elemchukwu-James described participants’ design of ‘Community Resilience Plan,’ to manage and combat environmental degradation and crises, as part of achievements recorded at the event.
The forum also witnessed the launching of EUFORDs’ Center For Resilience and Rights.
“This center is established to build resilience as Trauma-Care for victims of environmental degradation, support for survivors of Gender Based Violence (GBV) and a platform where victims of environmental injustice and other GBV cases can seek redress,” Elemchukwu-James said.
Participants celebrated the milestones achieved and charted a path toward greater impact in the coming years. They also described the event as “an inspiring and transformative experience.”
Elemchukwu-James said the awareness creation workshop “reaffirms EUFORDe’s mission to create an equitable society in which the rights and capacities of women, youth, children and underprivileged are integrated in the socio-economic planning and development of communities, for the attainment of equity and peace.
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