Govt seeks partnership with varisties on climate change

TOWARDS ensuring that national programmes mitigate the impacts of climate change and its variability, the Federal government plans to review all existing environmental legislations in the country.
 
The proposed review would provide the needed national roadmap for sustainable development at all levels and in all key stakeholder constituencies, including engaging universities and research institute in various fields to collaborate with government on climate change.
 
The Minister of Environment, Amina Mohammed made the disclosure at one-day Stakeholders’ Workshop on Climate Change Research Agenda for West African Science Service Centre On Climate Change and Adaptive Land Use (WASCAL) in Abuja.

“It is indeed heart warming that an organization such as WASCAL which was formed few years ago has created a niche for itself and is willing to assist the nation in developing its capacity through education and research, a must in this era of changing climate.”

To Mohammed, this is unique opportunity for the representatives of the climate community in Nigeria to identify, discuss and prepare a research agenda aimed at integrating into research focus for the West African Sub-region.

She maintained, WASCAL in collaboration with ECOWAS and Germany government would blaze the trial in enhancing the capacity of tertiary institutions and their partners in filling the much-needed research gap in the sub-region.

Mainstreaming climate change into all facets of our lives, the Minister continued, would indeed require the outputs from credible researches taken in these institutions, adding, “I encourage you to key into this document as you prepare an agenda.”
 
Earlier, Vice Chairman of WASCAL Governing Board, Prof. Adeniyi Osuntogun, disclosed the idea to establish the organization originated 2007 when German Chancellor Angels Merkel announced the intention to allocate funds to increase involvement in research capacities in Sub-Saharan Africa.