…Opens Application Portal For 20 Champions

By Yunusa Isa, Gombe

A leading youth focused organization YandyTech Community, has launched its Youth Empowerment for Climate Action in Nigeria (YE-CAN) pilot project to empower young people in Gombe State to take lead in mitigating climate change challenges.

Speaking to newsmen during the project launch in Gombe, the founder and Chief Executive Officer YE-CAN Project, Muhammad Yayandi, said the project targets young people who are mostly excluded in climate change issues.

“Climate change has had a devastating impact on Gombe State, with increased frequency and severity of droughts, floods, and other extreme weather events. These challenges disproportionately affect young people aged 18-25, who are often excluded from decision-making processes”.

He said YE-CAN aims to equip these young people with the necessary skills to become climate change ambassadors across Gombe State, and in addressing the climate change issues affecting the state.

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“The YE-CAN project seeks to change this narrative by providing young people with the necessary tools and support to become climate change leaders. Through leadership training, capacity-building workshops, mentorship, and entrepreneurship incubation, YE-CAN will equip young people with the skills and knowledge to develop innovative solutions to climate challenges”.

Yayandi said following an online survey on youth participation on climate change, YE-CAN project has open its application portal for interested applicants.

“The call for applications for the recruitment of 20 YE-CAN champions is hereby released today, and will last for 2 weeks before we close the application. Interested applicants can apply via: http:/bit.Iy/YE-CANApplication or visit our social media handles; Facebook, X and Instagram for more details”, the CEO added.

On her part, the State’s Project Focal Person Hajiya Hadiyya Usman, said being a gender sensitive project, YE-CAN planned to recruit ten male and ten female young persons who will be trained on planting traditional trees, processing of farm residue into useful materials to mitigate the effects of climate change.

The focal person said “We are optimistic that the six months pilot project will be expanded to various parts of the state upon successful completion”.

Speaking on sustainability, Hadiyya Usman said the project is in synergy with key stakeholders in the state, including the State Ministry of Environment and Forest Resources, Gombe State Environmental Protection Agency (GOSEPA) amongst others.

In his goodwill message, the representative of the State Ministry of Environment and Forest Resources Absolom Baba, commended the youth for the initiative, maintaining that the project will benefit the state in general and youths in particular.

He however challenged stakeholders in the project on awareness creation.

“You need to do a lot to enlightened our people on the reality of this climate change, because most people don’t actually believe that climate change has any effect on their lives, they look at it as myth not something that needs real and collective efforts to address”.

YE-CAN project being executed through YandyTech, has support from from the Comic Relief Inc. (CRUS) – Juntanza Fund.