CLIMATE CHANGE ADVOCACY AND BEHAVIORAL CHANGE COMMUNICATION IN NIGERIA

There is a need for greater enforcement of climate change laws and the implementation of policies in global climate discourse because many nations lose millions of dollars in unsustainable investment funds. Policymakers in Nigeria also are faced with the challenge of implementing climate change strategies at local levels and mainstream community climate actions to growth priorities. Several national institutions and the private sector have limited capacities to translate these strategies into policies that protect vulnerable indigenous communities. In response to these gaps, the Michelle Obama Young African Women Leadership Forum, funded through the United States Embassy Small Grants Program, executed a pilot project in two Nigerian communities: Dobi (Gwagalada Area Council in the Federal Capital Territory) and Abule Ado (Amuwo Odofin Local Government Area in Lagos State) to test the use of incentives for driving behavioral changes as a more lasting approach to climate solutions. The project explored how to influence traditional leaders and communities to act in environmentally friendly ways. The theoretical framework of the study combined the Diffusion-of-Innovations and Stages-of-Change models that underpin various levels of motivation to change at different levels. The methodology used an approach combined gender, the environment, and agroforestry in training the target groups. Primary data from the advocacy visits, in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, and evaluation questionnaires were analyzed. Eighty families in the pilot communities received One thousand, seven hundred economic tree seedlings including Sandbox tree (Hura crepitans), Gmelina (G. Arborea), Almond (Prunus glandulosa), Orange (Citrus sinensis), Mangoes (Mangifera Indica - Alphonso), African Talisay (Terminalia), Guava (Psidium guajava), and Teak (Tectona grandis). By the end of the project, over 85% of the trees thrived, and the target groups showed a good understanding of climate imperatives for the agroforestry intervention. The actions produced better ownership and more sustainable results based on the incentives provided to the communities.