Agroup of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) working on environmental rights have urged government to focus more on alternatives to fossil fuels.

At a briefing in Lagos after the Climate Change Conference in Egypt, Executive Director of Corporate Accountability & Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), Akinbode Oluwafemi, said Nigeria should explore its renewable energy potential.

He said: “Nigeria has 40 per cent of global power for renewable energy which it can take advantage of rather than depending on fossil fuels.”

Director of Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), Dr Nnimmo Bassey, said Africa must address climate impacts.

“Delaying action on loss and damage means tossing nations into more famine, fires, and floods.

“Climate change continues to be driven by development based on exploitation of peoples and destruction of nature in the guise of fighting global warming.

“If we must have a livable future, COP must act, especially concerning phasing out fossil fuels,” he said.

Bassey said the loss and damage agenda should not be taken as charity but as reparations for centuries of ecocide and damaging activities.

Executive Director of Environmental Rights Action/ Friends of the Earth (ERA), Chima Williams, noted: “Loss and damage is a distraction. Polluters of the environment must be held accountable. Strategic litigation is the way out.

“It’s not just about the government but the people as well. The government must think outside the box and do things differently.”