State Signs Deal to Distribute Two Million Clean Cookstoves to Households
- The Benue State Government signed an agreement with Greenplinth Africa to deploy two million clean cookstoves
- The initiative is aimed at reducing reliance on the use of firewood and supporting climate-friendly cooking alternatives
- Beneficiary households will receive cookstoves, stainless steel pots and briquettes made from agricultural waste
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Oluwatobi Odeyinka is a business editor at Legit.ng, covering energy, the money market, technology and macroeconomic trends in Nigeria.
The Benue State Government has entered into a Memorandum of Agreement with Greenplinth Africa to deploy two million clean cookstoves across the state as part of efforts to reduce reliance on firewood and promote climate-friendly cooking alternatives.
Source: UGC
According to stakeholders, the agreement, signed with the Benue State Council on Climate Change during the Green Conference in Lagos, marks a step towards implementing practical climate solutions at the sub-national level in Nigeria.
The three-day conference, themed “Decarbonisation Africa: Pathway to Climate Finance, Sustainable Growth and Green Economy,” brought together policymakers, investors and stakeholders in the green economy sector, PUNCH reported.
Partnership aimed to cut emission
Director-General of the Benue State Council on Climate Change, Daniel Mailumo, said the partnership is designed to cut emissions, improve household welfare and support the state’s long-term climate targets.
Mailumo explained that distributing clean cookstoves would help reduce dependence on firewood, particularly among rural households.
“The deployment of clean cookstoves to Benue means rural women will no longer rely on firewood but on low-emission alternatives. This will help us protect our environment as we drive towards net-zero emissions,” he said.
Each household to receive two cookstoves
According to Aina, each participating household will receive two clean cookstoves, stainless steel cooking pots and 40 kilograms of briquettes made from agricultural waste such as rice husks.
Beneficiaries will also receive monthly financial incentives and health insurance coverage for their families, he added.
Aina noted that the project would convert farm residues into useful fuel while addressing issues such as deforestation, indoor air pollution and rural poverty.
He added that women and girls (who often spend long hours gathering firewood and face health risks from smoke) are expected to benefit significantly from the programme.
“We want to ensure the girl-child has more time to study and mothers are protected from respiratory ailments caused by smoke inhalation,” Aina said.
Source: Getty Images
Greenplinth Africa plans 80 million cookstoves
A member of Greenplinth Africa’s management team, Salisu Dahiru, said the conference builds on previous engagements and provides updates on ongoing plans to distribute 80 million cookstoves and support large-scale tree planting initiatives for carbon credit generation.
Dahiru also commended Nigeria’s climate governance framework, noting that the country is among the few nations with a dedicated Climate Change Act that provides legal backing for emission reduction efforts across federal, state and local governments.
However, he noted that implementation can be complex due to the country’s size and multi-tier governance structure.
He said partnerships between state governments and private-sector organisations are helping accelerate climate action.
BURN to help Nigeria scale up clean cooking
Legit.ng earlier reported that BURN, the world’s leading clean cookstove company and carbon project developer, is supporting Nigeria’s efforts to scale clean cooking as one of the country’s most immediate and investable climate solutions, delivering emissions reductions, public health gains, and industrial growth.
BURN says clean cooking offers Nigeria a fast, investable path to climate action with immediate health and economic benefits.
Experts believe new carbon market and tax policies are also lifting investor confidence and accelerating private-sector participation. The key to scaling clean stove access is local manufacturing, and carbon-backed subsidies to lower costs for households
Source: Legit.ng
