By Yero S. Bah
Mr. Joe S. Bongay is a member of the Young Volunteers for the Environment (YVE), a pan-African environmental body which was established in 2012 in the Gambia, but with branches in over 25 African countries, advocating for green policies, technologies, environmental management, sustainable energy solutions and ecological practices on the continent.
In an exclusive interview Mansa Banko Online, Bongay delved into the climate and environmental challenges that the Gambia treks on as global climate change uncertainties intensify, including that of the small West African state of The Gambia.
Climate scientists and environmental activists attribute the global warming trend, and the unpredictable patterns of environmental reactions in recent years, to climate change. The resultant effects are flash floods, prolonged draughts, uncontrollable sea level rise and extreme weather conditions around the world, particularly in countries that are located below sea levels.
The YVE volunteer told this medium the Gambia has a combination of numerous climate change challenges such as biodiversity loss, youth unemployment, food insecurity, high level of poverty like in many other African countries, which remains a threat to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the country.
As Bongay outlined, these threats are further amplified by the alarming rate of deforestation compared to slow forest regeneration, unsustainable farming practices, limited climate change awareness, limited seeds and seedlings for tree-planting activities, poor youth participation, overdependence on the forest for sustenance, especially for rural communities, thus leading to destruction of the bio-physical structure of the land, which increases the susceptibility to climate change and ecological crisis.
He, however, believes the currently held “environmental notions” are beginning to shift as young people are now leading the fight against climate change, reasoning they initiate green innovations, and create networking channels to share information.
“Youth are in the forefront engaging themselves in green initiatives across the country,” the member of the pan-African environmental body acknowledged.
The seasoned environmental activist said it’s expected that government would double up its efforts to the mission of tree planting for a healthier population and better environment to enhanced the ability of young people and communities in sustaining agricultural food production for food security, nutrition and income generation; whilst at the same time safeguard the environment by adopting agricultural practices and appropriate technologies.
Bongay intimated that his Organization has made some tremendous achievements, notably the hosting and implementation of both international and national funded projects in the Gambia which earned the network some global awards. He added it also created a self-sustaining environmental model for the environment and community development which could be replicated in other African communities.
He continued that YVE, in partnership with development stakeholders, has implemented projects like the “Views from the Front Line (VFL) 2018-2020, a project that was aimed at strengthening the inclusion and collaboration between at-risk people, civil society and government in the design and implementation of policies and practices to reduce risk and strengthen resilience, in partnership with the Global Network of Civil society Organizations for Disaster Reduction (GNDR) supported by the European Union (EU).
He spoke of the Advocacy and Country Study (ACS) on the Elimination of Lead Paints in the Gambia project, in partnership with the National Environment Agency (NEA) and funded by IPEN 2020-2021 SAICM GEF lead paints, another project his organization is involved in implementing, which aims to raise awareness countrywide, about the effects of lead chemicals, develop innovative strategies to come up with sustainable solutions to address, and control some of the most pressing challenges and dangers of Lead paints in the Gambia.
