Achakpa Priscilla is the National Coordinator, Water and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) and the Executive Director, Women Environmental Programme (WEP). She speaks with DOYIN ADEOYE on involvement of women and youths in African environmentalism, among other issues. Excerpts:
What are the objectives of the Women Environmental Programme (WEP)?
WEP is a non-governmental, non-profit, non-religious and voluntary organisation whose vision is to see a society where the environmental, economic and political rights of women, children and youths are protected. Our mission is to empower women and youths to effectively address the environmental, economic and political issues that affect them.
The organisation has grown from strength to strength at national, regional and global levels, while still ensuring its primary focus which is the grass roots women and youths. We have the United Nations (UN) Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) status and an observer status to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). With this status, WEP can participate as a major group organisation in contributing to the intergovernmental decision-making process in the UN-System and we are at the moment one of the Organising Partner (OP) for the Women Major Groups (WMG) as well as the Women and Gender Constituency at the UN.
Would you say gender plays a role in environmental management?
The world is unique for every human being, but in general, women’s lives vary greatly from those of men because of patterns of socialisation related to gender. In terms of the environment, women around the world play distinct roles in managing plants and animals in forests, drylands, wetlands and agriculture; in collecting water, fuel and fodder for domestic use and income generation; and in overseeing land and water resources. By so doing, they contribute time, energy, skills and personal visions to family and community development. So women’s extensive experience makes them an invaluable source of knowledge and expertise on environmental management and appropriate actions.
A lot still needs to be done on the incorporation of gender sensitivity in Nigeria’s environmental policies. What would you recommend?
Women have continued to play greater roles in the management and sustainability of their environment. However, it is sad to note that they are sparely involved or completely absent in most of the decisions and policies made. What needs to be done in this regard is for women to wake up by voting for women in politics, as well as sensitisation and awareness on the need for the involvement of women in policies and decisions in the management of their natural resources.
Also, the girl child must be encouraged and supported to study
sciences to enable them compete favourably with their male counterpart.
Knowledge is power and without knowledge, women cannot influence
policies that affect them.
What rights do women have in relation to the environment?
Despite large obstacles, women have proven to be highly effective agents of change, organising all over the world to demand and work towards a healthy environment. Although limited, there have been recognitions of women’s contributions and potential towards survival and development. For most societies in the present world, discriminatory social structures and attitudes at personal, community and institutional levels, persist in deeply entrenched patterns of gender inequality.
Many women encounter steep barriers related to their family and socio-economic status, including their living conditions in isolated or impoverished areas. They combine household and reproductive tasks such as cleaning, cooking, shopping, childbearing and care giving, as well as the provision of water, fuel and other products, with productive activities in the fields or through other forms of income generation.
Despite several conventions at national, regional and global levels which have incorporated gender issues, the domestication of these policies and conventions still remains a stumbling block for the attainment of women and environmental management. However, it is worthy of note that women have continued to push, advocate, organise, mobilise at all levels to ensure that their rights are recognised and implemented.
Many still don’t have access to clean and drinkable water. How would you react to this?
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that was adopted by over 150 heads of states including that of Nigeria in 2015 had Goal 6 specifically targeting accessibility of water and sanitation, recognising the fact that access to clean water is a basic human right. However, the MDGs could not meet this target and therefore access to safe drinking water still remains a mirage in many urban and rural communities in Nigeria. Even where it is available, the supply is often erratic and even worse, the water is sometimes contaminated because it is piped through a network of old, rusty and unhygienic drainages. With a specific goal on water and sanitation, I am optimistic that Nigeria would be able to achieve the adopted agenda 2030.
What inspired the Rural Sanitation and Hygiene Promotion in Nigeria (RUSHPIN) inaugurated by WSSCC in 2013?
RUSHPIN works with the government and people of Nigeria at all levels to improve sanitation access and hygiene behaviour for 2.2 million persons. It targets 1,271 communities in six Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Cross River and Benue States, through a demand-led process and increased government commitment in the sector.
The programme will reach these 2.2 million persons with sanitation and hygiene messages. By doing so, 1.3 million people are expected, not only to change from open to fixed place defecation, but to use improved sanitation facilities.
The RUSHPIN programme has recorded remarkable progress following the signing of the MoU and involvement of the Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) Foundation.
In its third year, the programme has reached 820 communities, out of which 506 have attained an Open Defecation Free (ODF) status. In all, 210,725 individuals now live in ODF environments and an estimated 267,997 people, thus far, have received targeted hygiene messages.
What does the Girls and Women Initiative in Nigeria (G-WIN) intend to achieve?
In recognition of the fact that the nation’s resources and opportunities currently places girls and women at a disadvantage, and in realisation of the potentials inherent in the average girl and woman in Nigeria to sustainably contribute to the overall growth and development of the community and the country, former president, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, approved the implementation of the Girls and Women Initiative in Nigeria (G-WIN) project.
Five federal ministries: the Ministry of Water Resources, Agriculture, Works, Health and Communication, implemented the G-WIN project.
The main objective of the G-WIN project is to improve the lives of poorest girls and women in Nigeria by redirecting government funds to delivering concrete results for girls and women. It also emphasises the fact that supporting girls and women leads to better outcomes for the nation at large. The project was specifically implemented in Abia, Bauchi, Delta, Plateau, Kebbi, Osun and Taraba and over 700 women and girls were trained and given starter packs as take off grant for their businesses.
For the Federal Ministry of Water Resources, their vision for the project was to make women leaders in water management. Monitored by the Ministry of Women Affairs & Social Development, the project comprises awareness campaigns, advocacies and training to build the capacities of hard to reach rural women and girls in the water sector on CLTS, hygiene education, slabs production, facility operation and maintenance, leadership and conflict resolution and entrepreneurship.
The main objective of the G-WIN project is to improve the lives of poorest girls and women in Nigeria by redirecting government funds to delivering concrete results for girls and women. It also emphasises the fact that supporting girls and women leads to better outcomes for the nation at large. The project was specifically implemented in Abia, Bauchi, Delta, Plateau, Kebbi, Osun and Taraba and over 700 women and girls were trained and given starter packs as take off grant for their businesses.
WEP is a non-governmental, non-profit, non-religious and voluntary organisation whose vision is to see a society where the environmental, economic and political rights of women, children and youths are protected. Our mission is to empower women and youths to effectively address the environmental, economic and political issues that affect them.
The organisation has grown from strength to strength at national, regional and global levels, while still ensuring its primary focus which is the grass roots women and youths. We have the United Nations (UN) Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) status and an observer status to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). With this status, WEP can participate as a major group organisation in contributing to the intergovernmental decision-making process in the UN-System and we are at the moment one of the Organising Partner (OP) for the Women Major Groups (WMG) as well as the Women and Gender Constituency at the UN.
Would you say gender plays a role in environmental management?
The world is unique for every human being, but in general, women’s lives vary greatly from those of men because of patterns of socialisation related to gender. In terms of the environment, women around the world play distinct roles in managing plants and animals in forests, drylands, wetlands and agriculture; in collecting water, fuel and fodder for domestic use and income generation; and in overseeing land and water resources. By so doing, they contribute time, energy, skills and personal visions to family and community development. So women’s extensive experience makes them an invaluable source of knowledge and expertise on environmental management and appropriate actions.
A lot still needs to be done on the incorporation of gender sensitivity in Nigeria’s environmental policies. What would you recommend?
Women have continued to play greater roles in the management and sustainability of their environment. However, it is sad to note that they are sparely involved or completely absent in most of the decisions and policies made. What needs to be done in this regard is for women to wake up by voting for women in politics, as well as sensitisation and awareness on the need for the involvement of women in policies and decisions in the management of their natural resources.
Also, the girl child must be encouraged and supported to study
sciences to enable them compete favourably with their male counterpart.
Knowledge is power and without knowledge, women cannot influence
policies that affect them.What rights do women have in relation to the environment?
Despite large obstacles, women have proven to be highly effective agents of change, organising all over the world to demand and work towards a healthy environment. Although limited, there have been recognitions of women’s contributions and potential towards survival and development. For most societies in the present world, discriminatory social structures and attitudes at personal, community and institutional levels, persist in deeply entrenched patterns of gender inequality.
Many women encounter steep barriers related to their family and socio-economic status, including their living conditions in isolated or impoverished areas. They combine household and reproductive tasks such as cleaning, cooking, shopping, childbearing and care giving, as well as the provision of water, fuel and other products, with productive activities in the fields or through other forms of income generation.
Despite several conventions at national, regional and global levels which have incorporated gender issues, the domestication of these policies and conventions still remains a stumbling block for the attainment of women and environmental management. However, it is worthy of note that women have continued to push, advocate, organise, mobilise at all levels to ensure that their rights are recognised and implemented.
Many still don’t have access to clean and drinkable water. How would you react to this?
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that was adopted by over 150 heads of states including that of Nigeria in 2015 had Goal 6 specifically targeting accessibility of water and sanitation, recognising the fact that access to clean water is a basic human right. However, the MDGs could not meet this target and therefore access to safe drinking water still remains a mirage in many urban and rural communities in Nigeria. Even where it is available, the supply is often erratic and even worse, the water is sometimes contaminated because it is piped through a network of old, rusty and unhygienic drainages. With a specific goal on water and sanitation, I am optimistic that Nigeria would be able to achieve the adopted agenda 2030.
What inspired the Rural Sanitation and Hygiene Promotion in Nigeria (RUSHPIN) inaugurated by WSSCC in 2013?
RUSHPIN works with the government and people of Nigeria at all levels to improve sanitation access and hygiene behaviour for 2.2 million persons. It targets 1,271 communities in six Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Cross River and Benue States, through a demand-led process and increased government commitment in the sector.
The programme will reach these 2.2 million persons with sanitation and hygiene messages. By doing so, 1.3 million people are expected, not only to change from open to fixed place defecation, but to use improved sanitation facilities.
The RUSHPIN programme has recorded remarkable progress following the signing of the MoU and involvement of the Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) Foundation.
In its third year, the programme has reached 820 communities, out of which 506 have attained an Open Defecation Free (ODF) status. In all, 210,725 individuals now live in ODF environments and an estimated 267,997 people, thus far, have received targeted hygiene messages.
What does the Girls and Women Initiative in Nigeria (G-WIN) intend to achieve?
In recognition of the fact that the nation’s resources and opportunities currently places girls and women at a disadvantage, and in realisation of the potentials inherent in the average girl and woman in Nigeria to sustainably contribute to the overall growth and development of the community and the country, former president, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, approved the implementation of the Girls and Women Initiative in Nigeria (G-WIN) project.
Five federal ministries: the Ministry of Water Resources, Agriculture, Works, Health and Communication, implemented the G-WIN project.
The main objective of the G-WIN project is to improve the lives of poorest girls and women in Nigeria by redirecting government funds to delivering concrete results for girls and women. It also emphasises the fact that supporting girls and women leads to better outcomes for the nation at large. The project was specifically implemented in Abia, Bauchi, Delta, Plateau, Kebbi, Osun and Taraba and over 700 women and girls were trained and given starter packs as take off grant for their businesses.
For the Federal Ministry of Water Resources, their vision for the project was to make women leaders in water management. Monitored by the Ministry of Women Affairs & Social Development, the project comprises awareness campaigns, advocacies and training to build the capacities of hard to reach rural women and girls in the water sector on CLTS, hygiene education, slabs production, facility operation and maintenance, leadership and conflict resolution and entrepreneurship.
The main objective of the G-WIN project is to improve the lives of poorest girls and women in Nigeria by redirecting government funds to delivering concrete results for girls and women. It also emphasises the fact that supporting girls and women leads to better outcomes for the nation at large. The project was specifically implemented in Abia, Bauchi, Delta, Plateau, Kebbi, Osun and Taraba and over 700 women and girls were trained and given starter packs as take off grant for their businesses.
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