Solidaridad@COP24 – Nigerian Pavilion Side Event – Update

At COP24 held in Katowice, Poland, Solidaridad held a third side event at the Nigerian Pavilion. This was done in partnership with the Women Environmental Programme; Climate and Sustainable Development Network of Nigeria and Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu-Alike. About 50 participants discussed with Solidaridad effective approaches for implementing the project – "National Initiatives for Sustainable Climate-Smart Oil Palm Smallholders – NI-SCOPS" in Asia and Africa. Jan Maarten Dros, Climate Innovation Manager at Solidaridad led the discussion on behalf of Solidaridad Network. 

SOLIDARIDAD’S PRESENTATION

KEY MESSAGES

  • It is possible for Africa to be self sufficient in climate-smart oil palm production.
  • Work with the existing participatory land ownership structures in Africa and focus on maintaining the existing landscape mosaics, as opposed to creating large scale monocultures.
  • Intensification with best management practices can result in huge productivity increases in order to significantly reduce the need for additional land for the same output. 
  • The Solidaridad – IDH NI-SCOPS programme targets 80,000 smallholder farmers across 4 countries to produce climate smart palm oil.
  • Large scale agriculture is incompatible with the way land is governed in Africa.
  • More scientific research is needed in growing climate smart oil palm in Africa to explore the trade offs and adaptation needs.
  • Focus on women and children’s rights within the context of professionalization of artisanal palm oil mills and tolling stations. 

Click here to download Solidaridad’s presentation

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