By: Peter Uwumarogie
The Gombe State Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL) Project has distributed energy-efficient cooking stoves to communities around the Federal College of Education (Technical), Gombe.
The beneficiary communities are those where erosion control projects had earlier been implemented.
Speaking during the distribution exercise in Gombe, the ACReSAL State Project Coordinator, Dr Sani Jauro, said the initiative was part of efforts to mitigate the impact of climate change.
Jauro explained that the stoves would help reduce dependence on traditional, inefficient cooking methods, which contribute to deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions.
He added that the stoves were designed to use less fuel and emit fewer pollutants, thereby reducing carbon emissions and improving environmental conditions in the affected communities.
According to him, the initiative aligns with the commitment of Gov. Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe to tackle deforestation and promote a holistic approach to addressing climate change.
“We have supported each of the nine communities with 100 pieces each and included some poultry houses and fish pond owners with a total of 975 stoves.
“We are doing this to support the communities around FCE and also sensitise them against tree felling and on climate change issues,” the coordinator said.
Jauro said the tree planting campaign under ACReSAL had recorded great success, with millions of trees planted across the state.
He noted that the distribution of energy-efficient stoves was part of efforts to protect the planted trees and preserve the environment.
He urged residents to support the administration of Gov. Inuwa Yahaya by planting trees during the wet season as part of collective efforts to fight climate change.
Earlier, the Shamakin Gombe, Alhaji Ibrahim Babayo, commended ACReSAL for the intervention, saying the stoves would benefit residents of the nine target communities and help reduce carbon emissions.
One of the beneficiaries, Mrs Sa’adatu Nuhu, a resident of Arawa Community in Gombe Local Government Area, expressed gratitude for the support.
She said the energy-efficient stove would help her save money and protect her health from the harmful smoke associated with firewood use.
“Many of us are poor and cannot buy this stove, but today here we are being given without paying anything; this will save our money, since it is energy-efficient and saves cost of cooking.
“It will also reduce our reliance on fire-woods and protect our eyes from smokes, which usually, was beginning to pose health risk for us,” she said.
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