Mkpoikana Udoma
Port Harcourt — As the world marks the International Day of the Tropics, the Media Awareness and Justice Initiative, MAJI, has raised the alarm on the devastating impact of oil spills and carbon emissions on Nigeria’s tropical regions.
The group, which lamented that the oil-rich Niger Delta region has been ravaged by decades of oil spills, resulting in widespread environmental degradation and biodiversity loss; charged the Federal Government to leverage data tools and strategies to address the environmental and climate-related challenges facing the country.
According to MAJI, Nigeria is grappling with significant environmental degradation and biodiversity loss, largely due to human activities such as oil spills, artisanal crude oil refining, and indiscriminate mining.
MAJI’s Executive Director, Mr Okoro Onyekachi Emmanuel, emphasized the need for evidence-based interventions, stressing that the lack of adequate environmental data has hindered the government’s ability to effectively address climate change and environmental degradation.
Okoro while briefing newsmen in Port Harcourt, noted that the country’s rich tropical diversity was under threat, with nearly 95% of the world’s mangrove forests and 99% of mangrove species facing extinction.
He announced that MAJI has developed an Environmental Data Analysis Mobile App called DATACAB, which collects and analyzes environmental data to provide insights for stakeholders; and urged the government and other stakeholders to adopt similar data-driven approaches to combat environmental challenges.
“The Federal government of Nigeria has to make specific efforts to firstly document environmental data in a sustainable and effective manner. This data will be strategic in the analysis which will provide the platform for evidence-based intervention, and data-oriented engagements at all levels of governance.”
Okoro speaking through the Project Officer for Policy and Governance, MAJI, Mr Ikechukwu Ahaka, warned that failure to address these issues will have far-reaching consequences for the environment, local communities, and the economy.
He said, “The Nigerian government must take immediate action to address these environmental challenges. We urge the government to invest in data-driven solutions, like our DATACAB Environmental Portal, to monitor and mitigate the impact of oil spills and carbon emissions.”
“MAJI urges the federal government and other stakeholders to use this Year’s International Day for tropics to ponder on current challenges facing Nigeria’s rich ecological environment. it is a clarion call for all of us to embrace technological tools, data approaches and evidence-based interventions in curbing the huge environmental and ecological challenges that affects Nigeria’s rich tropical diversity.
“In our effort to commemorate the 2024 World Day of the Tropics, we call on the Nigeria Government and all other relevant stakeholders to quickly initiate scientific resilient methods of addressing the menace of climate change that is generally creating environmental threats in our tropical environment.
“While MAJI’s ‘Datacab Environmental Portal’ identifies some of these challenges through environmental data collection and analysis, we believe more robust engagement and rigorous collaboration between stakeholders will enhance Citizens education, awareness and Participation. This we believe will immensely contribute to the mitigation of these impacts.
“For us at in MAJI the 2024 World Day of the Tropics serves as a gentle reminder for all stakeholders, government, social development groups, the media, private sector and communities to collectively reflect on the impacts of the damages on our environment and collaboratively develop inclusive strategies that will provide the platform for sustainable protection of the tropical regions in Nigeria.”
