The federal government, in 2014 under the presidential intervention for the clean cookstove, approved the sum of N9.2 billion for the purchase of stoves for women in the rural areas.
The initiative came about because of the effect of the constant felling of trees on the environment. Constant felling of trees has resulted in desertification in the north and erosion problems in the south of the country.
According to research over one million Nigerians lack access to electricity grid, much more lack access to safe, clean and sustainable energy thereby depending on firewood as cooking energy. Energy generated from firewood according to experts is not good for the health.
Though many small and large industries depend on wood for raw material, much more small and medium sized households in Nigeria still depend largely on firewood. Statistics has shown that 90 per cent of trees felled are used for cooking. While cutting of trees results in desertification cooking with firewood has been said to kill according to a World Health Organisation report which disclosed that over 95,000 women and children die from smoke inhaled by cooking with wood, thereby turning their kitchens into death trap.
Also, statistics has shown that only about 40 per cent of the population has access to the country’s electricity grid. About 72 per cent of the population depend on traditional fuel, that is wood for cooking. Despite that government financing for energy services that benefit the majority of Nigeria’s population has been grossly inadequate. The growing energy poverty in Nigeria is strongly linked to the broader increase in the population of the poor in the country.
In a bid to create cleaner cooking method as against the traditional method of using wood as fuel for cooking, the federal executive council approved the sum of N9.2 billion for the procurement of 750,000 clean stoves and 18,000 wonder bags.
However according to the minster of environment Mrs Laurencia Mallam, the government has so far released N5 billion out of the N9.2 billion earmarked for the project.
Mallam while inspecting the stoves over the weekend at the national stadium admitted that though N5 billion has been released by the federal government to the ministry, the contractor has only been given N1.3 billion to execute the contract. She ascertained that N3.7 billion was still in the ministry’s account.
Mallam explained that the N1.3 billion given to the contractor is part of the 15 per cent kick off contract agreement. She said the remaining N3.7 billion is kept safe in the ministry’s account.
She said, “The project of distributing clean cook stove is to reduce the number of trees cut down to cook in the rural area by distributing clean cook stoves to rural women and as we begin now, it will spread throughout the country and by year 2020 most of the rural women will be using the stove and by then the forest will be saved.”
The minister further added that the distribution of the stoves had started in the northern part of the country due to the encroachment of desert into the country and that the President wants it to spread throughout the country. On the mode of distribution she said distribution will be through the ministries across the states.
Also speaking, the contractor of the project, Integral Renewable Energy Service Limited, Boma Young-Harry said that the stoves will be supply in batches based on the amount received from the ministry.
He said, “we have only received the sum of N1.3 billion which is 15 per cent of the total amount of the project cost which was our initial agreement.
“We have started with the money given to us and we have no challenge with that at all,” Harry said.
However stakeholders are worried about the laudability of the project. While funds for the project have been approved since last year stakeholders have complained that little has been done on the part of government to educate the citizens or beneficiaries about this programme. Rather than ensuring that this exercise is genuinely executed, there have been bureaucracies and bottlenecks making the simple process difficult.
Also the disbandment of a transparency and accountability committee constituting members from the media, civil society organisations (CSOs) and other key stakeholders in the sector by the Ministry of Environment quickly reinforces the government ingenuity to properly execute this programme. Again there are questions on why the ministry did not give the contractor the released N5 billion.
Stakeholders have said the whole process would have been avoided if the government had consulted widely before embarking on the robust exercise. However if the money is channeled rightly the desired results will be achieved. They advised that instead of the federal government to buy and distribute the stoves freely, it should rather import the technology home so that it can be readily available at a cheaper price. The stakeholders also demanded that the government consult wider for the implementation of the National Clean Cookstove Scheme and institutionalise a publicly known mechanism for dissemination of the cookstoves, while making transparent the identities of beneficiaries of the stoves.
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