The Minister of Environment, Mallam Balarabe Abbas Lawal, has assured stakeholders of his commitment to mitigating environmental challenges nationwide.
Balarabe stated this recently in Abuja at the Third Quarter Citizens and Stakeholders’ Engagement on the achievements of the Ministry’s projects and programmes under the Ministerial Deliverables since the inception of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR’s administration in May 2023.
The Minister said the event was meant to roll out the major achievements of the Ministry, including the implementation of policies, programmes, and projects for environmental sustainability, climate resilience, and economic development in Nigeria, such as the National Adaptation Programme (NAP), Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation, the Green Bond Programme, among others.
He used the meeting to highlight the strategic initiatives undertaken by the Ministry, the challenges encountered, and the way forward in achieving a greener and more sustainable future for the country, in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the President.
Some of the interventions of the Ministry include the planting of 10 million trees nationwide in collaboration with the Forestry Department, NAGGW, and ACReSAL to ensure biodiversity, combat deforestation, and curb desertification.
He further noted that the Ministry is collaborating with the Ministry of Justice, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) with a view to enhancing the enforcement of environmental laws.
Also, Balarabe revealed that the Ministry has established 195km shelterbelts in eight northern states, constructed over 4,602 solar streetlights, distributed 6,600 improved super-safe cooking stoves and 130 safer pressurised pumps to discourage deforestation in rural communities.
In addition, the Ministry has achieved a 95 percent accuracy rate of flood early warning alerts every five days through its automated web-based flood early warning system nationwide, while also executing 238 major flood and gully erosion control projects across the country.
The Ministry further launched an Agroforestry Project by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Republic of Cameroon and a cooperation framework agreement on trans-boundary ecosystem conservation and sustainable management of forestry and wildlife research. It also distributed 5,253 mini solar systems in various communities across 11 frontline states.
The Ministry has also commissioned 13 operational water treatment stations in Ogoniland, with a 100-bed specialist hospital and a 40-bed cottage hospital in Buan at 95 percent completion, to address health-related issues in Ogoniland under the HYPREP project.
The Director of Environmental Assessment, Mrs. Odetoro, urged Nigerians to forward their views regarding the environmental impact of any construction projects in their locality before the Ministry issues EIAs.
The Director of Information and Public Relations, Ibrahim Haruna, called on Nigerians at home and in the diaspora to follow up on the achievements of the environmental sector via the Ministry’s website, www.fmenv.gov.ng, and the Federal Government portal, www.nigeria.gov.ng, for more information on the environment and other sectors.
In her closing remarks, the Director of Planning, Research, and Statistics, Mrs. Agnes Aneke, thanked stakeholders, donor partners, and citizens for their support and assured them that the Ministry would continue to ensure healthier and cleaner environmental sustainability nationwide.