NGO seeks inclusion of Agroecology in Climate Change Policy
The Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), a Non-Governmental Organization in Nigeria, has advocated the inclusion of agroecology in the country’s National Climate Change Policy.
Agroecology, the application of ecological concepts and principles in farming, promotes practices that mitigate climate change, among other things, reducing emissions, recycling resources and prioritizing local supply chains.
(In November 2021, Nigeria passed the Climate Change Bill that includes a net zero target for 2050 to 2070. The bill includes provisions to set five-year carbon budgets under a National Climate Change Action Plan to be ratified by the Federal Executive Council. The Federal Ministry of Environment is tasked with setting the carbon budgets, while the National Council on Climate Change, established by the bill, will oversee implementation).
According to a statement by Ms Joyce Brown, Programmes Manager of the organization in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, the effort would help to reduce climate change and other environmental challenges.
Brown said that the world was battling with climate change, adding that there were solutions to sustain agriculture among smallholder farmers.
“The solution would also address climate-smart agriculture, sustainable agricultural intensification and carbon capture, but some of these solutions have implications for local communities and ecosystem balance,” she noted.
According to her, research has shown that agriculture and agrarian reforms rooted in agro-ecological practice and principles help cool the planet and ensure climate resilience.
“This is what small-scale farmers and producers have been calling for and defending for many millennia.
“Politics, poor implementation and follow-up are some of the factors standing in the way of a transition to agroecology.
“Our organization has carried out a study on the climate change policies, with a view to finding entry points for mainstreaming of agroecology as a viable solution to the climate catastrophe.
“This study revealed that there is no policy that directly recognizes agroecology although some elements of it are mentioned in some of the policies.
“The study recommended a number of policies that can be reviewed for the purpose of mainstreaming agroecology and one of which is the National Agricultural Resilience Framework (NARF).
“The NARF offers a well-articulated national policy on short and long term strategies to reduce food and nutrition vulnerability,” said Brown.
According to Brown, the NGO would be organizing a capacity-building workshop to deepen understanding and strengthen advocacy for inclusion of agroecology in climate change policies.
She said the workshop was as a result of the study, building on the significance of agroecology in the food system and for climate resilience and adaptation.
Source: NAN
Additional Content: Amaka E. Nliam
