Revamp Rave Network, an environmental protection organisation has trained five Lagos coastal communities on protection and preservation of oceans, aquatic and human lives to ensure sustainability.
The communities included Epe, Ikorodu, Agoro-Oyingbo, Mosafejo and Badagry.
The Coastal Rural Community Conference on Climate Change 2024 held in Maryland was organised by Revamp Rave Network and had the theme “Strengthening the Capacity of Coastal Communities in Climate Adaptation and Mitigation for more Ocean Governance”.
Traditional rulers and artisans from the five communities and representatives of Lagos State and Federal Government from the Departments of Fisheries and the Environment were among guests at the hybrid event.
The founder, Revamp Rave Network, Abimbola Abikoye said the aim of the conference was to educate communities on issues concerning climate change and ocean conservation particularly exploring challenges of the fishing communities.
Abikoye said the programme was also to know the hardships the stakeholders were facing, their adaptive capacities and their state of mind to be able to help government to reform policies to capture needs of communities.
“There is a gap in our policies. Our policies are good but they don’t often fit into the peculiarities of our situation. And so, climate change is one of the issues that are causing many ecological damages, outside that, they are making communities loose their livelihoods.
“So this programme is to enhance their capacity, inform them, get to hear from them possible solutions or things they think that they can use to help themselves build more resilience,” she said.
She added that a lot could be achieved through collaboration with government by building capacity for coastal communities and climate change adaptation and mitigation.
Dr Oluseyi Soremikun, Director, United Nations Information Centre, Abuja who joined virtually explained dangers of plastic pollution to fish and the oceans.
He explained human actions responsible for fish scarcity, flooding, climate change.
He gave details of a research he carried out on Ogun River and was shocked that residents misinterpreted flooding of the river with some superstitious beliefs.
He said that fish scarcity was not caused by anger of gods but by environmental infractions and if measures were not taken to check plastic pollution it will affect future generations.
He explained that there were scientific reasons and “Some times when we find fish and kill it and we find plastic in them.”
He called for dialogue and action by coastal communities towards protection of the ocean.
Omoragbon Wellington, Director, Department of Fisheries, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security was represented by Hunyinbo Sewanu a Director, in the ministry.
Sewanu delivered a lecture tittled “Increasing Artisanal Fishers Knowledge in Adequate Fishing Regulations for More Climate and Ocean Action”.
He said the justice for the ocean and the environment was a collective responsibility.
“The ocean is crying, it is under pressure,” he said.
He said more than 75 per cent of the fishing community were women and government must be careful to provide alternatives when dislodging them.
He said fish life, ocean life and environment matters hence the need for collaboration towards protection, preservation and restoration of the environment.
He listed challenges of small scale fishermen using traditional methods was practicing sustainable fishing and how government could assist them.
He stressed the importance of small scale fishing to include food security, resilience to climate change, economic contribution, biodiversity conservation.
“The demand for fish for and fishery products already put tremendous challenges on resources that already strained to the limit.
“The participation of the people is necessary for the overall goal to establish integrated approach that will rehabilitate, enhance and sustain fishery resources indefinitely.
“We should be aware that overfishing, climate-change and pollution reduce the productive capacity of the fishery sector.
“All tiers of government should partner with Revamp to address issues affecting artisans Fisher
fishery sector. Another cause of the under-development,” he said.
A participant, Pastor Raphael Hezekiah from Oworonshoki-Mosafejo community listing challenges of his area to include displacement by government and sand dredgers, water hyacinth, lack of market, inflation and oppression from fishing trawlers.
“This programme will assist us if governments at federal and state levels will unite and agree with the sponsor of this programme to help the local fishermen,” he said.
Another participant, Mrs Oluwakemi Ogidi from Bayeku in Ikorodu Local Government said the training was able to help her learn clean methods of processing fish without causing air pollution.
