Ajuri Ngelale as special envoy on Climate Action is a right man for the job. Although he is also regarded as the widely acclaimed right man for his other job- chief explainer of Nigerian government policy – some ask: ‘With all its university first classes and environmental NGO activity in the shadow of Ken Saro Wiwa, is Nigeria so bereft of climate action talent that it could not find another environmentally savvy man or preferable woman?’.
Nigeria does not need, and morally speaking, cannot afford, to give a well-paid and influential second job to one good man when first jobs are denied needy families requiring a good working breadwinner. Presidential conundrum?
Regardless, Ajuri rose to fame riding the climate action media meteor and it may be fair that he tries to bring his climate action and media passion to serve Nigeria and the presidency bedevilled with lobbying protagonists of ‘Oil Forever Or Till The World Ends Or Till The Oil Runs Out- WHICHEVER COMES FIRST!’
Ajuri faces huge resistance in an oil thirsty country with such a politically paralysed, incompetent and corruption driven poor electricity grid, 5Mw vs 100Mw required for 160m + cynical citizens after 63 years of independence during which almost every roof hides generators, petrol or diesel, in the ‘The Century of Hydrocarbon-isation of Electric Power’. Of course, there is a small but growing solar power component to help provide 24-hour power.
Pls. add the disaster around ‘The Toxic Plasticisation Of The World’ involving every drain and rubbish dump in Nigeria, from table, kitchens, offices, playgrounds and every meal and requiring recycling and banning of single use plastic.
Please add the need for mass production of pipe-borne water and running taps, to stop the ‘Pure Water Epidemic’ and definitely not individualised pure water bags to provide potable water. Recycling plants for all types of plastics is required. Even tyres should be recycled by law and not burnt. All these require massive National Orientation Agency, NOA educational programs and coverage.
Overall, there is need for the new envoy to explore and promote a multi-pronged approach to achieve environmentally friendly successes.
NIGERIAN SOLAR/ GREEN ENERGY RESEARCH: Request more Solar Research Projects in Nigeria funded by TETFUND.
ENCOURAGE BEST QUALITY SOLAR FACTORY INFRASTRUCTURE: Invitation to several, not a monopolistic one, cutting edge foreign solar panel and battery production factories by companies to set up in Nigeria to fill the gap between power need and the weak hydrocarbon electric power grid gap and need.
A SOLAR LOAN SCHEME: A generator-to-solar incentivised N50-100b Revolving Solar Equipment Conversion Loan Scheme. Bank of Industry or other bank run, 5-10 years loans, minimum-single digit interest with no money paid to clients but direct to contractors repeatedly vetted by ICPC, EFCC and Forensic accounting agency. This exists in many countries.
RESTORING/REVAMPING WATER PROJECTS FOR TAP DELIVERED POTABLE WATER in all cities and towns to cut out bottled and plastic bag -pure water pollution.
Compulsorily URGENTLY CREATE TEACH CLIMATE ACTION CURRICULUM with university created wall charts to every child and youth in all schools, primary and secondary, and all tertiary institutions and universities as part of General Paper. No exceptions and for every course.
Study, revive and broaden existing climate action projects fulfilling many SDGs particularly the ‘T.R.E.E INITIATIVE’ – ‘The Rural Environmental Empowerment Initiative’ aimed at planting 10m trees by 2025 with its component ‘ONE STUDENT ONE TREE PROJECT [OSOTP] of LAUTECH’s GROWING GREEN INITIATIVES; National SHEA TREE RESTORATION ADVOCACY PROGRAM, NSTRAP [2019-2025, and LOCAL COMMUNITIES TREE PLANTING PROGRAM, LCTP -domesticated to every POLITICAL WARD need leadership and direction. Is Ajuri Ngelale up to the task? Yes, we pray so.
Ngelale has a lot on his climate action plate. He does not have to reinvent the wheel on climate action. Nigeria has an army of climate action activists in need of more than voice. They need to be listened to by an action government instead of shouting themselves hoarse against various government and private sector SDG and environmental transgressors damaging the planet. There is a long road from chic environmental sloganism to climate action. However, only the federal government can direct and fund an education media blitz recruiting some well-paid Nollywood stars to sing and act in the media around slogans like Reuse, Repair, Recycle etc.
Will he deliver or wisely delegate the research and methodology to achieve maximally? Nigeria is sadly in a hurry in the wrong direction towards climate inaction and self-destruction with policy summersaults, poor implementation and zero use of a comatose, perhaps underfunded, moribund unresponsive NOA. In many countries throwing litter on the ground is anathema. In Nigeria it is the norm and good behaviour is the exception for even VIPs can be seen dropping water bottles and sweet wrapping on the floor or ground at functions or in class and lecture rooms expecting someone else to come and remove the litter that should not have been created in the first place. Disgraceful. Of course, it a job for parents, teachers and then governments and NOA.
Can Ajuri put the brakes on and even reverse our misfortune before our CINS, Corruption, Incompetence, Negligence and Selfishness combined with NASS indecisive environmental inaction condemn us to become Climate Action Orphans or Climate Action Pariah or [irresponsible] Climate Action Trumpites or Climate Action Refuseniks-Rejectionists?
We pray, for the children of Nigeria’s sake, that Aguri Ngelale succeeds in bringing environmental change, bottom- up.
