SEO Riders
– Bayelsa & Delta Locals Call for Ground-Up Climate Action & Policy Enforcement
– Community Proposals Include Waste Systems, Agri Inputs, & Localised Laws
– AAPW & Denmark Empowering Voices in Green & Blue Economy Planning
During town hall meetings in Bayelsa and Delta states, community members gathered under the banner of “Advancing Community Capacity to Mitigate Climate Change Impact and Develop Green and Blue Economy in the Niger Delta” (an initiative by Academic Associates PeaceWorks supported by the Embassy of Denmark) laid out a series of concrete proposals to mitigate the climate crisis in their region. These communities, drawing on local knowledge and lived experience, emphasised workable solutions such as establishing functional waste management systems, improving access to agricultural inputs and credit, enforcing conservation laws, and localising environmental policies so they reflect the realities of communities. Issues like oil-spill pollution, gas flaring, marine life destruction from unregulated trawling, and poor environmental sanitation were raised as major sources of harm and vulnerability.
Speakers also noted systemic gaps: weak enforcement of existing environmental laws, exclusion of women, youth, farmers, and fishers from planning and decision-making, and limited livelihood options responsive to climate change. They urged that outcomes from the consultations be carried forward into actionable policy—strengthening local by-laws, building technical capacity, and increasing accountability from state and federal government. AAPW committed to continue engaging traditional institutions, community stakeholders, and policymakers to ensure that dialogue translates into real change.
