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As part of its intervention strategies
aimed at mitigating the adverse effects of climate change in the
northern part of Nigeria, the Nigerian Conservation Foundation, in
partnership with the Canadian International Development Agency, has
commenced activities towards the implementation of Reducing Emissions
through Reduction in Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) in Taraba
State.

The activities, which contain different
steps, involve the use of tools that are capable of receding the
current rate of forest loss in Nigeria and at the same time provide
financial incentives for forest-based communities in Taraba. The
foundation said it had secured support from CIDA in the form of a
contribution grant towards biodiversity conservation and natural
resources management programme in the state.

Sensitising the people

According to them,
the two-day workshop organised last week was aimed at sensitising
stakeholders towards the preparation for the full implementation of the
project. “The workshop provided the stakeholders (a platform) to
discuss the role of forest degradation in carbon emission and the
efforts of REDD as a tool for reducing deforestation while providing
financial incentives to communities through carbon credits,” said
Tirimisiyu Ashimi, the foundation’s Taraba Project Manager. He added
that the sensitisation workshop was necessary given the low level
awareness on the climate change in the state despite the state’s
strategic position on the delivery of the UN-REDD programme in Nigeria
and the potential opportunities available to forest-based communities
in the state. “It also analysed Nigeria’s current efforts on REDD and
what the Taraba State government and people need to do as preparatory
efforts towards REDD implementation in the state,” he said.

As part of her direct intervention, the foundation has identified
and participated in the development of principles and guidelines for
REDD and took part in various fora to develop the REDD strategy for
Nigeria. Speaking at the workshop in Jalingo, the Director of Technical
Programmes, Alade Adeleke, said that though Nigeria may not have the
financial resources or sophisticated technology to mitigate climate
change, the country is endowed with a mosaic of natural ecosystems that
have the capacity for carbon sequestration. “Ecosystem services
produced by ecosystems and biodiversity such as food, water, timber,
fuel and fibre, particularly food are one of the key drivers of
inflation rate,” he said. “NCF climate change adaptation initiative,
therefore, seeks to assist communities especially those around our
intervention sites to increase their resilience to climate change
induced challenges such as food security, agriculture, watershed
management, and natural systems conservation.”