A non-governmental organization, Media Awareness and Justice Initiative (MAJI), with support from United Nations Democracy Fund (UNDF), has trained over 20 stakeholders from different government agencies, the media and civil society groups in Rivers State on data gathering and air quality monitoring and analysis.
The stakeholders were trained during a one-day Environmental Portal Validation Meeting in Port Harcourt.
The training was part of a Strengthening Data for Climate Action in Nigeria (SD-CAN) Project, geared towards empowering critical stakeholders to improve their capabilities in evidence-based engagements, fact-based discussions, data gathering and air quality monitoring and analysis using DataCab portal.
Speaking, Executive Director of MAJI, Emmanuel Onyekachi Okoro, said the training also aims to build capacity of the stakeholders in having a good understanding of air quality, improve their discussions around climate justice as well as their capabilities on usage of the environmental portal.
Okoro said, "MAJI is a non-governmental organization based in River State, working along the intersections of technology, digital inclusion and environmental accountability in Niger Delta.
"Over the years we've worked around the inclusion of data in environmental governance and we've developed a portal called the Data Casting Biodiversity Portal, which is called DataCab for short.
"This portal has been developed to incorporate data use into environmental monitoring, data analysis and to incorporate data into environmental accountability.
"Our meeting today is looking at validating the portal, making input into what the portal can do and how stakeholders contribute to efficiently improving the capabilities of the environmental portal.
"For us, we believe that to propagate the narratives, the efficiency and the importance of air quality monitoring, we have to engage with strategic stakeholders.
We believe that civil society organizations play a key role in improving and advancing advocacy and campaigns."
He emphasised on the importance of including the media in the engagement training saying, "We feel the media are an important stakeholder in advancing awareness around air quality."
Okoro, who disclosed that air quality in Rivers State is challenging, hinted that Nigeria has been identified as one of the six most polluted countries with worst air qualities in the world.
"We are looking for ways to have the media to start propagating this narrative in the public space, generate public discussions to ensure that the government contributes and does all its contributions to ensuring that air quality is identified, analysed and monitored, and also ensure that there's an engagement for air quality," he said.
Mr Okoro further disclosed that "MAJI is identifying with key government stakeholders like the National Oil Spill Response and Detection Agency (NOSDRA), the National Environmental Standards and Evaluation Agency, and other key stakeholders that dimension the environment.
How can they incorporate air quality monitoring into their official reporting?
"We believe that these are all important fundamentals in ensuring that air quality is improved and environmental governance is used more adequately."
He added that, "After developing an air quality portal, we are also looking to develop a mobile app that will be feeding from the air quality profile.
That app can be downloadable by all. People can have the app on their mobile device, like Android or IOS."
Those trained during the meeting were representatives from different Civil Society Organisations, the media, government agencies, academia, as well as community groups, among others.
"The training and key interactions with these stakeholders are strategic in highlighting and ensuring that we carry a holistic approach to environmental governance in data.
These stakeholders are very huge players in environmental governance," Okoro said.
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