By Patrick Ochei
A civil society group under the aegis of Noble Delta Women for Peace and Development International (NDWPD) has advocated that governments should take up tree planting as their pet project in order to avert the negative impact of climate change to our environment.
The above position was established during a press conference on Gender, Land Grabbing and Forest Degradation in the South-South, Nigeria, with a theme on “Land Grabbing and its Impact on Forest Resources and Gender Equality”.
Briefing the press, the Executive Director of NDWPD, Amb. Mrs. Caroline Usikpedo-Oliseowe said there is need for every government to see tree planting as an important policy of government in order to save the environment from unnecessary reaction.
She insisted that where a tree is cut down, another 10 should be planted to replace the one that was cut down.
The ED affirmed that a lot was wrong with the land resource management, because women were not usually involved, adding that the civil society organisations are now looking in the direction of training women to be included in forest governance to reclaim their space in Land Resource Management.
According to Usikpedo-Oliseowe, “Urgent and ambitious climate action and the protection and preservation of forests, forest landscapes and gender inclusion in forest governance are critical for sustaining all lives on earth including our own lives.
“Deforestation is not only causing climate change, but climate change is also contributing to further deforestation and forest degradation, setting in motion a vicious cycle with devastating effects. Despite global commitments to fight climate change and save the world’s forests, deforestation and forest degradation continue to take place at alarming rates”, she maintained.
As a further call to action, Usikpedo-Oliseowe urged government to consider factoring women into Land governance system, stressing that the activities of land grabbing and forest degradation affect women the more and impede on their livelihood.
She therefore, called on governments at all levels and all relevant stakeholders to implement actions that would address land grabbing and forest degradation in South-South and Nigeria in general.
In her attempt to proffer solutions, she stated that “The main advantage that a community stands to benefit is the fulfillment of the agreed corporate social responsibility attached to the investment made on their lands; there should be an enforcement concerning this responsibility so as to give back to the community.
“The impact of women losing their traditional livelihoods to uncertain gamble in the name of land grabbing to an investor is a very high risk to the community. It is every community’s vision to develop to greater heights and to have a positive impact on the livelihood of its individuals. Land acquired for the production of food, etc., can be of great impact to everyone involved”, the ED of NDWPD posited.
In a nutshell, Usikpedo-Oliseowe urged all and sundry to protect and preserve their common heritage, quoting Gary Snyder who said that “Nature is not a place to visit, it is home”.
