The Climate and Sustainable Development Network of Nigeria (CSDevNet) in collaboration with Unilever Nigeria have donated some Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and also intensified their Covid-19 inter-city advocacy at Akpanya and Odolu, Igalamela/Odolu, Kogi State.
Akpanya and Odolu in Anyigba, Dekina Local Government of Kogi State are communities bordering Kogi and Enugu state.
Mr Steve Abuh, the Advocacy/Stakeholder Engagement Manager of CSDevNet who disclosed this in a statement in Abuja said the idea was to educate the people on the containment of the deadly virus.
“CSDevNet is a coalition with a membership of 300 organisations cutting across the six geo-political zones in Nigeria bringing together community associations, pastoralists, youth and women groups, media networks, faith-based and civil society organisations.
“All these bodies work on sustainable development goals to commonly promote and advocate pro-poor, climate-friendly and equity-based responses to climate change and sustainable development.
Abuh said that since Kogi is yet to record any COVID-19 case, there was the need for the interstate border campaign.
“Some of the items distributed include, hand washing machines, reusable nose masks, hand sanitizers, soaps, and other personal hygiene essentials.
“Since Nigeria recorded her first case of Coronavirus disease, the record consistently has been on the increase, and gaining a growing spread across the country, hence the need to safeguard Kogi.
“CSDevNet from the early stage of this pandemic till now, has been collaborating with other organisations in massive campaigns on COVID-19 and has also donated some PPE across the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria.”
He said the Traditional Rulers, HRH Michael Atuluku of Odolu and HRH Sylvester Onoja of Akpanya who took delivery of the items on behalf of their communities, ‘appreciated this gesture’.
“They also called for increased collaboration by the government, corporate organisations, and individuals for such an effort to be replicated to ensure they all overcome this pandemic in no distant time’’.
He said that CSDevNet will continue to unify and coordinate isolated civil society efforts on climate change advocacy in Nigeria.
“We will ensure that people-centred response mechanisms are accorded desirable attention and relevance as climate change is increasingly mainstreamed into national and global poverty reduction and sustainable development strategies and actions”, he pledged.
