Nigerian Environmental and Climate Activists have lamented about the gross exclusion of frontline community members who have suffered the effect of climate change at the recently concluded Conference of Practise, COP 27.
The activists also noted that fossil fuel industry lobbyists and those who contribute more to climate change were heavily present at the COP.
Such a trend, they described as an act that prevented the people’s voices to be adequately represented at the COP.
The activists spoke at a Post-COP media conference organized by the Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), in Lagos.
Akinbode Oluwafemi, the Executive Director of CAPPA shared that Africa is the most vulnerable continent to climate change impacts but has not been adequately compensated.
Oluwafemi stressed that Africa needs climate financing, adding that every Climate action/climate financing should be people focused.
On his part, Philip Jakpor, Director of Programmes at CAPPA, said despite being an African COP, frontline community members were prevented from going into where the bulk of decisions was made.
Commending the Loss and Damage fund which was an outcome of the COP, Zikorah Ibeh, said it is a major political win for activists and developing countries who have been campaigning for Loss and Damage over the years.
Ibeh said “Loss and Damage is quite important because there are situations that adaptation and mitigation cannot address the impacts of climate change. If someone has died as a result of flood or any other climate-induced incident, it is compensation that would help in that instance.”
She however noted that “while loss and damage was able to get on the agenda, there are grey areas that are yet to be addressed, without which it would not perform the key issues it’s designed for.”
Speaking on the grey areas, Olamide Martins of CAPPA noted that there is a question of who measures the level of vulnerability to be able to pay the loss and damage, adding that “Loss and damage will address historical damage what will address current damage”