Clean Cookstoves project to promote healthy cooking practices in Nigeria

…As Greenplinth Africa begins free distribution of 80m cookstoves

…Project to cut down carbon footprint in Nigeria

As the Clean Cookstoves Project comes on stream in the country, more Nigerian women will adopt healthy and environmentally-friendly cooking practices in the next few years.

This comes as Greenplinth Africa partners with the United Nations International Peace and Governance Council (UNIPGC), state governments, market leaders and other stakeholders to distribute 80 million improved woodstoves to women, and households across Nigeria.

The cookstoves will be deployed at no cost to the beneficiaries and will drastically reduce the use of traditional firewood during cooking to over 90 percent.

It is estimated that over 180 million Nigerians lack access to clean-cooking fuels and technologies, according to the National Clean Cooking Policy.

The use of this cooking energy impacts negatively on public health, and women and results in climate change challenges.

The project involves the procurement, pre-fabrication, assembling and commissioning of highly efficient fuel wood cookstoves.

Also, there would be sensitisation campaigns and training of users mainly in households across the 36 States of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory.

At the official flag-off of the 80 million Clean Cookstoves Project in Nigeria, Olawale Akinwumi, CEO of Greenplinth Africa, said that 80 million clean cookstoves would be distributed to women and households in Nigeria.

He also said that it comes with the benefit of planting 50 trees per stove.

“It is the most efficient cooking stove that makes use of waste wood, unlike the regular cooking methods that use large chunks of firewood. It is going to be distributed for free to beneficiaries because it is being financed through carbon credit. We have signed a $1.5 billion agreement for carbon credit,” he added.

Flagging off the project in Lagos, Gloria Akobundu, national coordinator of Africa Union Development Agency – New Partnership for Africa’s Development (AUDA-NEPAD) Nigeria, said the project was important to the health of Nigerian women who bear the brunt of using harmful cooking practices.

“We need clean cookstoves to help our women live healthy lives; make the environment healthy, minimise the cost of cooking especially spending money on buying gas or kerosene and the money saved would be used for other household needs.

“The clean stove would eliminate the need to cut our forest and reduce the rate of erosion, desert encroachment and flooding and the nation would have more arable land for farming,” she explained.

Akobundu explained that every state in Nigeria will have a centre where people can access clean stoves, and young people will be employed to advocate and distribute the stoves.

She said the beneficiary would be given a grant annually and monitored every three months to follow up on the use and performance of the stove.

According to her, the project would be executed in partnership with state, and local government including communities, youth leaders, market leaders and media.

Titilayo Oshodi, senior special assistant to Lagos State Governor on Climate Change and Circular Economy, said it is an important step towards improving health, empowering women and protecting the environment.

She said the initiative resonates with the THEMES agenda of the state government which prioritises health and the environment.

She said traditional cooking practices expose African women and children to harmful indoor air pollution and contribute to serious health issues.

“It is estimated that 4 million premature deaths occur annually due to illness associated with harmful cooking practices and the environmental impact is equally alarming,” she said.

She however said that the introduction of clean cookstoves would help to reduce the impact of cooking on the health of women.

Jonathan Ojadah, global president of the UNIPGC, expressed joy in partnering with Greenplinth Africa in the distribution of 80 million clean cookstoves to women from disadvantaged homes in Nigeria.

Represented by Abimbola Olayinka, executive council member, Ojadah said the initiative not only tackles issues of greenhouse gas emission but also empowers families by providing them with sustainable cooking solutions.

He called all Nigerians to join in building a more sustainable future towards ensuring a healthier environment for the present and future generations.

Presenting the project roadmap, Yahaya Ahmed, COO of Greenplinth Africa, said that cutting down forests to generate firewood for cooking is creating three major environmental problems in Nigeria.

The problems, he said, include desert encroachment in the north, over-flooding in the southwest and erosion in the southeast, adding that the problems have consequences on the lives of the citizens.

Ahmed said the initiative will tackle climate change head-on by reducing the use of biomass as about 70 percent of Nigerians rely on biomass and the aim of the initiative is to the number.

“We want to move Nigeria from the habit of deforestation to tree planting and ensure that we have healthy cooking habits. Therefore, for every clean cooking stove that we give, we will plant 50 economic trees.

“We will plant at least 4 billion trees and create millions of jobs because we are training youths in various communities to assemble the clean cooking stove that will be brought into the country in CKD before assembling them,” Ahmed said.

According to him, the initiative is targeted at reducing carbon emissions by 800 million tonnes, 80 percent reduction in fuel reduction and empowering Nigerian women.

On the implementation roadmap, Ahmed said the pilot project will start in December 2024 and all through the next two years; full-scale rollout will happen within the next five years while the completion stage will last till 2030.

On the project financing framework, Babatunde Aina, director of Greenplinth Africa, said the project is funded through carbon credit and that they made the largest purchase of carbon credit in Nigeria.

“This money would be used to buy the CKD cooking stove and pay for the logistics. There is about $940 billion worth of carbon credit in the global market and Africa has not tapped up to 1.5 percent of the money,” Aina explained.

Pointing out that certificates would be given to the first 50 beneficiaries of the cooking stove, which would be given to them free, Aina said the project will kick off in December 2024 to end in December 2030.

Earlier, Rosaline Amangbo, secretary general of the UNIPGC- Africa, said cooking is a daily experience for African women and it takes a lot of productive time and finance.

According to her, the deployment of a clean cooking stove reduces carbon emissions from harmful cooking habits and reduces the risk of lung and respiratory diseases caused by inhaling smoke from cooking with firewood.