President Bola Tinubu yesterday called for a concerted effort by stakeholders including institutions, and development partners to safeguard the environment and ensure a win-win transition that guarantees a prosperous and clean economic future for all.
Tinubu made the call in his speech on the occasion of World Environment Day marked every June 5 to raise awareness on environmental matters, emphasizing that “to heal our world, we must begin by healing the land and its people.”
Dwelling on the theme of this year’s occasion, ‘Land restoration, desertification, and drought resilience’, the President noted the significance, particularly for Nigeria, where the scourge of drought threatens parts of the country.
He called for a more proactive approach to protect the land and ecosystem through afforestation, water conservation, and the cessation of indiscriminate felling of trees.
Recall that in his determination towards Nigeria’s aspiration to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, President Tinubu established the Presidential Committee on Climate Action and Green Economic Solutions, which he chairs, to oversee the nation’s climate mitigation and adaptation efforts, as well as green economy initiatives.
The President also approved the establishment of Nigeria’s first Green Industrial Zone, Evergreen City, which is poised to be the leading manufacturing hub in Africa for renewable energy technologies, green solutions, and climate-adaptation technologies.
He restated his commitment to ensuring the planting of 25 million trees by 2030, not only to protect the environment but also to provide opportunities for Nigeria’s youths within the green economy value chain.
The President had also appointed his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Ajuri Ngelale, as Nigeria’s Special Presidential Envoy on Climate Action.
This was as he established a 25-person committee to oversee the country’s green economic initiatives.
The World Environment Day was established by the United Nations during the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment in 1972.
According to the projections of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, about 40 percent of our planet’s land is degraded, which directly impacts half of the world’s population.
The UN Convention to Combat Desertification also says the number and duration of droughts have increased by 29 percent since 2000 and that without urgent action, droughts may affect over three-quarters of the world’s population by 2050.
