The Plan International Nigeria’s Youth Advisory Panel (YAP) has urged the Federal Government to incorporate climate change study into the nation’s school curriculum to mitigate its impacts and actualise a sustainable green economy.
Chairperson of the YAP, Faith Adaji, made the call in Abuja at a panel discussion on the 2023 International Youth Day with the theme: ‘Green Skills for Youth towards a Sustainable World’.
She said education plays a huge role in building the skills of young women and girls to tackle climate change and support green economy, hence the need to teach the subject in schools to catch them young and get the nation’s youths involved in the climate change actions.
”The role of education in fostering and leveraging on economy for young women and girls is very important,” she said.
“Infusing climate change into the curriculum is very important because young children nowadays do not have the knowledge of climate change. But if it’s been taught right from primary to tertiary levels of education, whatever innovative change that the young people will be coming up with would have lasting impact on the environment.”
The Country Director, Plan International Nigeria, Mr Charles Usie, noted that there was need to create the space for youths so that their voices would be heard in ensuring sustainable development.
“Plan International is interested in partnering with you, listen to you, meet with you, hear your thoughts, visions and ideas and together form a group,” he said to the assembly of young people at the event.
”The intention is not to create more youth forum but to enable youths become contributors and solutions rather than problems in this country.”
He said: ”If you are a fool in Nigeria and you ‘japa’ (emigrate) to Canada, you will become a fool in Canada, if you are a fool in Nigeria and you ‘japa’ (emigrate) to UK, you will become a fool there but if you are successful in Nigeria and you can make it here, then you can make it anywhere.”
She assured young people that Plan International’s role was “to make sure you are an embodiment of success anywhere in Nigeria and you can make it work in Nigeria.”
A member of the Nigerian Youth Parliament (NYP), Mallam Marwan Umar, said the organisation would put forward recommendations to ensure climate change knowledge in the curriculum from the basic level.
Umar said this would allow young people especially adolescent girls in schools have knowledge about climate change and also to encourage more youth organisations participation in development.
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