Young
Volunteers for the Environment (YVE), in collaboration with relevant
stakeholders, recently held a national pre-Cop21 climate march and festival.
The volunteers marched from Jah Oil Junction to SSP Mini Stadium in Brikama, West Coast Region.At SSP Mini Stadium, the event was characterised by speeches from different personalities and drama performance.
Organisers said the event, supported by action/2015, was to remind African leaders about the needs and aspirations of global youth, ahead of the UN Climate Summit in Paris, France.
Speaking on the occasion, deputy governor of West Coast Region Musa Amul Nyass said The Gambia government recognises the need for action in tackling climate change, extreme poverty and ending inequality.
He said the government attaches great importance to the threat from current climate variability and projected climate change and has taken bold steps to tackle climate change
Joe Bongay, executive director of YVE, said world leaders are committed to new set of global goals called Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The SDGs provide a roadmap for the next 15 years for leaders to keep their commitments to end extreme poverty, fight inequality, and tackle climate change, he said.
He further noted that the new global goals symbolise an important shift in development as it recognises that issues like poverty, inequality, and climate change are interlinked.
“As governments of more than 190 countries meet in Paris for climate talks, YVE joins thousands around the world for a global climate march calling on leaders to accelerate progress in the fight against climate change,” Mr Bongay said.
He pointed out that as citizens and partners in the development of The Gambia, it is their responsibility to develop a dissemination strategy for making sure that the relevant decision-makers and stakeholders are aware of the campaign.
The campaign is powered by action/2015, one of the world’s largest civil society campaigners made up of more 2,000 organisations, networks and coalitions from 150 countries.
The director of YVE said as part of the campaign, more than 2,000 events in at least 150 countries are to turn on the heat on global leaders, demanding for an ambitious new global climate agreement at Cop21 in Paris.
