By Nneka Nwogwugwu
Kebetkache Women Development and Resource Centre has partnered with Journalists from flood-prone Niger Delta states to assist in sensitizing community members on the dangers of climate change, its effects, mitigation and adaptation.
Speaking at a One-Day Strategy meeting to build a coalition of journalists, which was sponsored by Oxfam, the Executive Director of Kebetkache, Emem Okon stated that the partnership will reduce the tolls of climate change if both the government and community members are aware of what climate change entails.
Okon added that the collaboration will amplify and raise more awareness on how government can tackle the issue head-on.
She said: “It’s become imperative to form the network so that the journalists will help propagate and educate both government and community people on the implications of climate change and on how to mitigate and reduce its dangers.
“In all these issues of Climate Change, it is the rural women that suffered much because they are more impacted due to the activities of the Multinationals that caused climate change, thereby resulting in flooding, food insecurity and health challenges of the people.
“So, the coalition of journalists will amplify campaign and advocacy on climate change, even though there is a disconnect between what the Federal and State governments are doing in respect to the issues of climate change.”
She further added, ” We want women to report their local experience on climate change with the media.
” The climate change work plan by the Federal Government is not known to women in these communities and there is no policy on adaptation and mitigation of climate change at the local level and local governments need information on how to access funding to implement climate change.”