The Ministry of Petroleum Resources, the National Centre for Women Development and the United Nations in Nigeria have launched the Nigerian Women for Liquefied Petroleum Gas project to increase women’s access to cooking gas.
The project, launched in Abuja, was aimed at discouraging Nigerian women from using firewood to cook.
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The United Nations Resident Coordinator in Nigeria, Edward Kallon, lamented that there were fewer women working in the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) value chain.
“This figure grows smaller the higher you go up the business ladder,” Kallon said.
He observed that in Nigeria, many women are still heavily dependent on wood fuel to perform their traditional roles, including cooking and income generating activities, which are highly fuel intensive.
“The distribution of LPG represents an important employment sector with growth potential to support the development and expansion of women entrepreneurship in the sector,” he said.
The Adesina Olaitan of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources said with the launch of the project, over 40 million households in Nigeria are expected to have access to cooking gas in the next 24 months.
The managing director of Zigma Gas, Funmi Ogbue, said rural women in Nigeria often cook with infants strapped on their back, exposing both to toxic fumes.
“The risk of developing emphysema is even higher than for people who smoke,” she said.
According to her, the use of LPG will save the country over $1bn per annum in kerosene subsidy. It will also ensure that Nigeria meets its commitment to climate change accord.
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