There is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ climate mitigation strategy that is at the disposal of people to combat its catastrophes across the world, and therefore, different people in different parts of the globe develop varied methods to fight against climate change and its byproducts.
In the West African nation of The Gambia, the use of firewood and charcoals for cooking and other commercial purposes is rampant as most households daily use firewood and charcoals for cooking, or warming their houses during cold weather season, among other things.
To mitigate this phenomenon, Buzz Women Gambia–a women-led and focused organization–through its climate change mitigation strategies, has contracted Ellen Seldenthuis, a Dutch national from The Netherlands, for the development of the ‘cooking bag’ which is an environmentally-friendly cooking tool for Gambian women.
The Buzz Women Gambia’s National Coordinator, Madam Fatou Touray Cham, told Mansa Banko Online that the cooking bag is unique, in the sense that it is a climate friendly tool that reduces labour for women, saves time, and contributes to the reduction of firewood and charcoals usage, which are key factors to deforestation and exposes cooks to all forms of smoke related ill-health conditions in most Gambian homes.
According to her, the clean ‘New Cooking Bag’ was first introduced in Ghana by Madam Seldenthuis who has been living in Ghana since 2004, adding it’s a value addition to the Buzz Women training. And its aim is to make cooking easier, healthier and faster for women, she stated.
The idea of introducing the product in the Gambia, she explained, came as a result of a conversation she had with the Dutch female entrepreneur, coupled with another training that was held in Fass Njaga Choir in North Bank Region where women-led organizations from The Netherlands and The Gambia came together, and one of the targets of some of these organizations was on climate change mitigation measures.
“Considering our level of income in the country, most women put food on the table through the cutting down of trees and use of charcoals. If we say these trees should be cut down, then we must plant trees.
“So, this is how we agreed on the introduction of the cooking bag which consumes lesser firewood or charcoals,” remarked the Buzz Women Gambia boss, during an exclusive interview.
An online search about the “New Cooking Bag (NCB) ”, an initiative of Ellen Seldenthuis, indicates that Ellen saw amount of time women in Ghana spend on food preparation as well as efforts needed to finish cooking ‘a meal in a day’, and that she believes this limits the development of women as they dedicate so much time and efforts to home chores.
The NCB, as explained, doesn’t need continuous heat source to cook the food that is wrapped in it because the food is just brought to boil temperatures in a pan with water over the fire before the food is poured into the cooking bag in a container of its own so that the cooking process continues.
Coordinator Touray Cham explained the whole concept is to see how best to reduce the amount of energy needed in traditional cooking using firewood and charcoals–which detrimental to the environment and human health–as well as create enough time for the women to catch up with other daily activities.
Environmentalists have hailed the technology, noting it could mitigate climate change hazards; minimize women and children’s exposure to smokes, thereby creating healthy environments and tackle deforestation as well as promotes the global goals of greener energy.
The materials used in the production of this cooking bag is from the ‘capote tree’ locally known as ‘Bantanghoo’.
“But even marijuana shafts or buds can be used as well as wax fabrics that are locally available and environmentally-friendly,” Touray Cham told this medium.
The cooking bags are said to time-saving, safer, and healthy in that it’s smoke free and environmentally friendly.
The food in the bag will be warm for six to seven hours and there is no need to heat or warm it again or cook afresh three times daily as is the norm in most Gambian homes.
Cham called on Gambian women to make best use of the technology to save their energy and time from their daily cooking hassles for the family.
