Environmental Rights Action/ Friends of the Earth Nigeria was a part of the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) Africa Regional Meeting which was held from the 9th to the 12th of September, 2023, at White Sand DarEs Salaam, Tanzania, with the primary objective of fostering collaboration and addressing key regional issues.
The meeting brought together, member organizations from different African countries to share insights, discuss challenges, and formulate strategies for sustainable regional development, with the Admin Manager of ERA/FoEN, Ubrei-Joe Mariere Maimoni, and the Program Officer Waste Management, Melody Enyinaya in attendance.
In a welcome remark presented at the opening session by the African Regional Coordinator of GAIA, Niven Reddy, a regional overview comprising a comprehensive detail of GAIA Africa’s current activities, the landscape already covered, and achievements of the different work streams, the growth trends and challenges were shared with member organizations.
During a story-sharing session on Energy transition, Ubrei-Joe shared ERA/FoEN’s clamour for energy transitions, our achievements, and success stories including the victories from litigations against the oil and gas multinational companies.
Speaking during the Zero Waste Case Study Lunch panel session, Melody Enyinnaya spoke on the role of community engagement in ERA/FoEN’s different zero waste projects, sharing success story on the two phases of the project “Strengthening local capacities for improved waste management policies”.
The meeting had participants engaged in interactive breakout sessions to delve deeper into specific issues, brainstorm solutions, and identify collaborative opportunities.
The key outcomes reached by the regional meeting include the identification of priority areas for collective action and the appointment of Comr. Maimoni Ubrei-Joe is one of the members of the new Regional Advisory Committee (RAC) and a creation of sub-regional teams to address specific challenges.
The ERA/FoEN team was also a part of the Lawyer’s Environmental Action Team/ Friends of the Earth Tanzania’s meeting which was held on 11th Oct, 2023 at Wayama Hotel, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania.
The group took turns to share their stories and challenges of activists and journalists in Tanzania as relates to their wealth in mineral resources such as tanzanite, gold, diamond, and coal.
In a brief presentation, Ubrei-Joe spoke on the experiences of the people of the Niger Delta and the devastations caused by oil exploration activities.
He further emphasized the campaign of “leave the oil in the ground” as a way to go, stating that the multinational companies do not leave communities better than they met them as a result of their dirty operations
The group pointed out the need for aggressive environmental restoration, especially in the mining communities. They agreed to come up with actionable plans to work with, including advocacy plans for the Climate Change Act in Tanzania. They stressed that the government policies in Tanzania are too ridged for activism and journalism which has adversely affected their activities as civil society organizations.