Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) has distributed Fuel Efficiency Stoves (FES) to 10, 300 households in Yobe State.
Flagging-off the distribution of the stoves in Potiskum local government, the head of Northeast Sub-Office of the FAO, Mr Alhassan Cisse said the measure was initiated to tackle deforestation and desertification in the area.
Cisse stated that the stoves were produced under the FAO’s Safe Access to Fuel and Energy (SAFE) and given to beneficiaries in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states.
He said the organisation produced the stoves based on the post-distribution evaluation of FES and noted that it led to 50 percent reduction in f irewood usage.
“The reduction in expenditure on fuel wood was 58%, and the frequency of fuel wood scouting time reduced from four times a week to 1.5 times a week, thus enhancing the protection of vulnerable groups.
“The 2022/23 intervention as launched today in Potiskum Yobe State is facilitated with the funding support from the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) and the Central Emergency Response Fund as well as the governments of Norway, Canada, Germany, Sweden, Japan and Switzerland. “FAO targets 49,700 households across the three states. This includes 33,400 in Borno, 10,300 in Yobe, and 6000 in Adamawa State.
“Further to this, FAO has also established six Fuel Efficient Stoves and seven Briquette production centers across the states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, including one briquette center in Tike community of Potiskum LGA, to sustainably enhance access to fuel and energy and provide a means of livelihood for vulnerable households, particularly women,” he said.
The FAO’s head of Northeast Sub-Office stated that the distribution of the 2000 FES was to encourage the communities to take ownership of the production centers and ensure they are well protected, to make it sustainable.
The commissioner for environment Hon Sidi Yakubu Karasuwa, represented by the director Climate Change of the ministry, Alhaji Ahmed Mohammed commended FOA for embarking on a project that will complement the effort of the state government in f ighting deforestation.
