Workshop: LACSOP, BfdW validate report on CLAIM, stresses grassroots input in climate change mitigation …Train communities on turning waste to wealth

By Cyriacus Nnaji:

Owing to the need to mitigate the impact of climate change, ensure sustainability, generate employment and transform waste to wealth, the Lagos State Civil Society Participation (LACSOP) for Development embarked on a project, Citizens-Led Accountability Mechanism for Mitigating Climate Change Impact; this initiative is supported by Bread for the World, a non-partisan faith-based organization that advocates for sound policies.

LACSOP, a forum of the major civil society networks and coalitions working for the advancement of the people of Lagos State, established in 2007, has been promoting ownership of the governance process through collaborative interventions with the executive, legislature, and the media and by conducting independent assessments of the government’s performance. LACSOP adopts a partnership model that empowers a wide range of civil society networks and coalitions and positions these to effectively engage with government Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) on evidence-based development priorities and reforms in Lagos State. With a 200+ civil society membership base, LACSOP strengthens democracy and good governance in the state through advocacy and coordination of civil society engagement to foster increased voice and accountability.

With support from Bread for the World (BfdW), LACSOP is implementing the Citizens-Led Accountability Mechanism for Mitigating Climate Change Impact. This initiative mobilizes youth and community stakeholders in Lagos Island and Apapa Local Government Areas to confront critical environmental challenges such as flooding, plastic pollution, and weak enforcement of climate-related policies.

Of course, Lagos, the largest city in Nigeria and the seventh fastest-growing city globally, is a sprawling metropolis with an estimated population of approximately 30 million, according to the Lagos State Bureau of Statistics (LBS). The rapid urbanization that fuels its growth also exacerbates social and environmental challenges, making it particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. The social fabric of Lagos is as dynamic as its population, characterized by diverse ethnic, religious, and socioeconomic groups coexisting within the city’s densely packed neighborhoods. Still, the lack of adequate awareness about climate change and entrenched behaviors such as indiscriminate waste disposal limit the collective capacity to address ecological crises.

While, the state government has shown commitment to tackling environmental issues through policies such as the Lagos State Climate Change Adaptation Strategy (LASCCAS) and the ban on single-use plastics, enforcement remains weak. Nationally, frameworks like the National Policy on Climate Change and the Climate Change Act of 2021 provide a policy foundation, but implementation at both the federal and state levels is inconsistent. Way forward, collaboration between government agencies, civil society, and communities is crucial to ensure these policies translate into tangible results.

Project objectives include enhanced awareness and understanding of climate change issues among community members including the link between plastic waste and urban flooding; Empower project beneficiaries to actively engage in climate-related policy discussions and decision-making processes at the local level; and Support and encourage youth to develop and implement innovative solutions that address climate change impacts, improve waste management, and build community resilience.

The project seeks to achieve among others the following outcomes: Increased awareness and understanding of climate change among citizens; an informed and engaged citizenry actively participating in climate mitigation efforts, improved waste management practices leading to reduced plastic pollution and flooding; strengthened accountability mechanisms influencing local climate policies and budgetary allocations and more sustainable and resilient communities, better prepared to adapt to climate change impact.

The project focuses on urban-poor and informal settlements in Lagos Island and Apapa LGAs, targeting youth aged 18–35 as change agents and future leaders of climate action.

Having kick started the project, five months after, LACSOP and BfdW convened a three-day workshop at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) between September 16 and 18, 2025 to also make public their studies carried out on the Citizens-Led Accountability Mechanism for Mitigating Climate Change Impact project.

Speaking to Journalists, Omolara Olusaiye, Project Manager, LACSOP, threw more light on the project, CLAIM, “It is an 18 months project, and it is a pilot project in two communities, Lagos Island and Apapa Local Government Areas.

“We are basically looking at the areas of flooding, plastic pollution and how we can manage waste disposal issues.  We are working with young people between the age of 18 and 35. And you might want to ask, why young people? Because they have lots of energy, and we know that they will be able to carry out activities that would be sustainable at the end and we also know that there are a lot of initiatives that have been done, a lot of policies that have been done, both at the federal and state levels but what about the local government level? That is why we are taking this to the grassroots level, local councils, and we planned to have different initiatives, for instance, today we are validating one of the three reports, which is validating the report on existing waste to wealth initiative connecting it to market opportunities to ensure sustainability. We also have a manual written in youth friendly manner, we hope to train them and we plan to cascade it down to the communities.

Speaking on impact of their advocacy at the grassroots level since the inception of the project, Olusaiye said. “Some of the things we did in those communities is to actually map the people we want to work with, we have the CDC, the CSO, we have persons living with disabilities, that is why we said CLAIM, there is inclusion part of it, as you can see, persons on wheel chair, because all these things we say, leave no one behind, they are all part of the community, we also have different associations in the communities, the traditional leaders, so these are the different groups we have mapped and we planned to work with and they are also here today to attest to the validation workshop. Now at the community level, we will still be there to train a large number and these will be like our climate change agents in these communities.”

On collaboration with the government, Olusaiye revealed that the group have carried out series of advocacy leading to government involvement in the initiative. “As you can see, we have MDAs, we have Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, We have the Office of the SDG, they also work with young people, they have what is called Volunteer Corp, we have Ministry of Youths and Social Development, we have relationship with all these groups.”

Olusaiye also threw more light on one of the focus of the project which is on how waste could be turned to wealth. She said, “In Lagos State there is a ban on single use or what they called ‘takeaway’ plastic, you know the state and federal have fantastic policies, they are there but we still have weak enforcement, so that is why with young people working with them at these two flash communities, and when you look at these communities, they have issues of flood and a lot waste. So with young people we know they are very agile, they work with us to create more awareness, then voice and accountability which is very key at the local government level, what are the plans, what are the budgets at that level? So we plan to coordinate them, raise the right questions to ensure that collectively, they are doing something that will impact the community for the good of all regarding climate change.

“There are a lot of opportunities, it is a goldmine as I said before, it is a sector that basic things like indiscriminate disposal of waste, any waste we generate, is it plastic, metal? We should have different places in our homes to keep them and we should also ask questions, for instance we learnt today that there are places these things we consider as waste, we can actually take them there and make some money. So that is why we are trying to raise a vanguard of young people that will be interested, some of the outcomes of this is that we will have less unemployment, citizenry that are well informed on climate change impact and how to go about it as well, Olusaiye stated.

Dr. Silvanus Egwu, a one-time Chairman, Community Development Association (CDA) in Sango Ota, Ogun State, representing People with Disabilities (PWD) having albinism, is a Computer Engineer based in Lagos Island, speaking on what he understood by wealth in waste, said, “Actually, waste, we don’t need to ring it as a bell before people will know that waste is a form of wealth, only that we are a developing nation, but in a way, waste can be converted to wealth if more people are sensitised like what LACSOP is doing today, because each of us is required to take it to their various communities and sectors we represent and preach the good news. I, personally, I don’t depend only on repairing computers, the waste from it I also turn it into money, as a side income. For instance, Toner, if I fix a printer, the Toner that is finished, one Toner for a printer, some of them is up to N100,000, N150,000, some are even up to N200,000 plus, but do you know that those finished, empty Toner, I can recycle them and it will do the same thing the new one does, at a cost of only N30,000 to N40,000. So the difference is clear. I make money for myself and I save money for the owner because I know where to get the material to recycle it and it does exactly the same thing the brand new Toner will do. That is why when we say waste is wealth we mean it in all entirety.”