COP28: FG accepts UAE humanitarian response stations in Nigeria

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has agreed to allow the Federal Government to establish humanitarian response stations throughout the nation in an effort to provide disaster victims with immediate assistance.

Dr. Betta Edu, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, revealed this information to press in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, following her meetings with Emirati government representatives at the ongoing United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28).

She stated that in order to address the humanitarian issues brought on by the insurgency, especially in the northeast, and to put an end to the widespread poverty in other regions of the nation, Nigeria requested assistance from the UAE.

The UAE Red Crescent, the nation’s Red Cross equivalent, according to Edu, is now prepared to construct a more robust humanitarian response network throughout the nation.

“We have held a lot of interactions at different levels, of course, with the UAE government,” she said, referring to talks with the nation’s Minister for Tolerance, who is also the President’s brother. We discussed in great detail how we may collaborate to lift millions of managers out of poverty.

We have communicated with the DG of the World Trade Organization, who happens to be one of our own. We’ve spoken with the president of the Islamic Development Bank, and their main areas of interest include initiatives for reducing poverty and humanitarian relief that they can provide to the nation.

“And lastly, we engaged with the Red Crescent, which functions similarly to the Red Cross in Dubai, and they are prepared to travel to Nigeria to assist us in creating a more robust humanitarian response network throughout the nation.”

The minister stated that the majority of Nigeria’s poverty and humanitarian challenges are caused by climate change, which has also led to insurgencies and security issues in the nation.

According to her, the ministry’s purpose at COP28 is to “see how we can be part of the adaptation to climate change, to get support to provide jobs for people to lift them out of poverty, to key into the Paris Agreement “. Moreover, consider how we might cooperate to guarantee that all natural disasters that cause humanitarian crises are avoided or at least lessened.

The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation places a high priority on climate change, according to Edu. The majority of poverty that we are addressing and the majority of our humanitarian crises are caused by climate change.

Climate change is to blame for the flooding that occurs in Nigeria on a biweekly basis. In addition, there are problems with the drying up of the Lake Chad Basin, the Sahel, and the surrounding areas, which have caused approximately 40 million people who depend on the basin to lose their means of subsistence.

These folks are now incredibly credulous. They fall into poverty and are thus easily exploited by anyone seeking to recruit them for any of the terrorist groups instigating the insurgency.

As we work to rescue people from humanitarian crises, we cannot stand by and watch as more people become entangled in them due to climate change. This meeting is being held for that reason.

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The industrialized world’s actions, which account for the majority of greenhouse emissions, are to blame for the climate change and its effects that are sweeping the planet, according to observations made by the federal government.

Asserting that the Nigerian delegation was committed to advocating for a position that benefits the nation and its citizens, Environment Minister Balarabe Lawal stated, “So, I think this year’s COP we are expecting a lot from it,” in an interview with State House correspondents on the fringes of COP28.

“This year’s conference has as its primary focus the issue of adaptation and mitigation,” he continued. Of course, the most pressing problem is loss and harm, which I believe touches most of us since we have long been victims of an unavoidably changing climate.

“The industrialization of the world has resulted in a multitude of climate-related problems that have impacted vulnerable nations, including Nigeria: desertification, coastline erosion, and numerous other concerns that preceded these problems. I believe that we are fortunate this year. The president of COP right now is a fierce individual. His speech left me really pleased.

With President Bola Tinubu’s viewpoint already stated at the occasion, he gave his assurance that the summit will be beneficial for Nigeria.

“So, I think this year’s COP is going to be very good for us,” Lawal continued, adding that Nigeria would share its thoughts on the different concerns regarding the effects of climate change and remediation.That explains why so many Nigerians are traveling to different sectors, including the ones pertaining to carbon grading, mitigation, methane (which the President addressed yesterday), and Nigeria’s position.

“Are already paying $30 billion in that area, and we have over $100 billion in the area of loss and damage, which is the issue of those that have been victims of flood and all sorts of consequences,” the minister noted, pointing out that the developed world has expressed their viewpoints.