Conservations NG

Category: Environments

  • Unity Bank strengthens support for climate action

    Unity Bank strengthens support for climate action

    Unity Bank says it is in partnership with Avant-Garde Innovation and Technology Services (AGITS) to deepen advocacy initiatives for stronger climate action that will entrench values and ethos for achieving Sustainable Development Goals in the country.

    A statement by the bank on Wednesday quoted Mrs Tomi Somefun, Managing Director, Unity Bank Plc, as stating this in Lagos at a roundtable discourse with the theme: “The Future of Sustainable Development in Nigeria: Achieving Economic Growth with Low Carbon Trajectory in a Circular Economy.”

    Somefun said that the discourse provided the platform for stakeholders to evaluate developmental activities impacting on climate change and opportunities in a green economy as a means of improving environmental sustainability.

    She said that a green economy would address global warming, rising sea levels, pollution, desertification and deforestation, and determine effective response to promote community action, protect the environment and advance sustainable development.

    Somefun, represented by Usman Abdulqadir, Executive Director, Risk Management and Compliance, stressed the need for increased stakeholder engagement on sustainable development to deepen commitments towards promoting climate change initiatives.

    “It is the hope that while sharing experiences on actions to protect the earth for future generations, the platform is capable of harnessing ideas to forge common action points and convergence for policy makers, entrepreneurs, sustainable development experts and other organisations playing pivotal roles to solve problems threatening the sustainability of the planet earth.

    “Having promoted sustainable practices in agriculture over the years, and its commitment to sustainability, Unity Bank appreciates the need to create more awareness, engagement and collaboration in the execution of sustainability initiatives, thus the roundtable is not only relevant but timely,” she said.

    Somefun recalled that in 2018, Unity Bank won the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) award on ‘Sustainable Transaction of the Year in Agriculture’ in recognition of the bank’s initiatives to promote sustainability initiatives and impact in the agricultural space

  • REDD+ programme gets Ogun, Edo, Plateau as new additions

    REDD+ programme gets Ogun, Edo, Plateau as new additions

    A recent scoping mission to seven states has led to the addition of Ogun, Edo and Plateau states to the the REDD+ Programme in Nigeria.

    According to reports, the Minister of Environment, Dr Mohammed Mahmoud, has endorsed the additions.

    REDD+ stands for countries’ efforts to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, and foster conservation, sustainable management of forests, and enhancement of forest carbon stocks.

    Dr Moses Amah, National Coordinator of the Programme made known the selection on Monday.

    READ ALSO: Ogun halts activities in forest reserves

    Amah noted that 17 states indicated interest in joining the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) funded REDD+ Readiness Programme but only seven were pre-qualified.

    “The 17 states are Edo, Delta, Imo, Akwa Ibom, Ogun, Plateau, Oyo, Kaduna, Enugu, Katsina, Bauchi, Jigawa, Lagos, Gombe, Anambra, Ebonyi and Abia,” he said.

    According to him, the scoping mission, conducted by two teams, was undertaken to select the three most qualified states from the seven based on laid down criteria such as presence of tropical forest, lowland rain forest, mangrove and montane forest and states’ commitments to sustainable forest management regimes.

    READ ALSO: Minister, others visit UK over Ogoni clean up

    Other criterias considered include forest dependent communities’ commitment to forest management; Institutional and regulatory framework that aligns with REDD+ implementation and State political will in driving sustainable forest management.

    “These criteria informed the ranking/scoring of the seven pre-qualified states in the selection process. All persons involved in the scoping mission made their scores based on the above criteria,” Amah said.

    He listed the summary of the average score for each state to be: Akwa Ibom State (66.5%), Edo State (77.8%), Delta State (63.8%), Imo State (61.6%), Plateau State (70%), Ogun State (80.2%) and Oyo State (60%).

    “It is worth noting that these scores show the potential of all the states being supported in the REDD+ readiness programme, but the constraint lies in the FCPF grant sum which can only support just three additional states,” said Amah.

    Cross River, Ondo and Nasarawa states, the earliest beneficiaries of a $3.8 million funding of the FCPF, are already implementing a REDD+ Readiness Programme.

    However, an additional $4.9 million grant was approved by the FCPF, an initiative of the World Bank, to extend the REDD+ Programme to more states.

  • BAT refutes Malawi child labour accusation

    BAT refutes Malawi child labour accusation

    British American Tobacco (BAT) defended its policies to prevent the use of child labour on Friday, November 1, 2019 following a claim that farmers in Malawi were forced to use children to meet exploitative contracts.

    London based lawyers Leigh Day announced on Thursday that it has sent a pre-action letter to BAT on behalf of nearly 2,000 tobacco tenant farmers in Malawi, including hundreds of children, accusing the company of facilitating forced and child labour.

    “British American Tobacco takes the issue of child labour extremely seriously and strongly agrees that children must never be exploited, exposed to danger or denied an education,’’

    Simon Cleverly, BAT’s group head of corporate affairs, said in a statement.

    “BAT business standards specifically state that we do not condone forced, bonded or involuntary labour.

    “We do not condone or employ child labour, and seek to ensure that the welfare, health and safety of children are paramount at all times,” Cleverly said.

    “As we have received a letter of claim relating to these allegations, it would be inappropriate for us to provide further comment at this time,’’ he added.

    Leigh Day said BAT had made huge profits from tobacco farmers who were effectively forced to work for very little pay under fear, duress and false pretences.

    The farmers were left with no option than to put their children to work on the farms too.

    “The child farmers miss school while often working gruelling 10- to 12-hour days,” it said, adding that BAT acquires tobacco from between 20,000 to 35,000 farms in Malawi.

    “While British American Tobacco amasses huge profits the farmers that do the gruelling and hazardous work of picking the tobacco leaves are paid little to nothing,’’ said Oliver Holland, an international lawyer for Leigh Day.

    “On top of all this the farmers are forced to make the heart-breaking decision to put their children to work, just to ensure they can make enough money so that they are not left in debt,’’ Holland said.

    A UN backed report in 2018 said child labour was very common in Malawi and affected an estimated 2.1 million children aged five to 17 years old, or 38 per cent of that age group.

    The number increase despite government-led efforts to reduce it over the past two decades.

    The inter-agency Understanding Children’s Work (UCW) Programme’s report on Malawi, based on research by the International Labour Organisation, UNICEF and the World Bank, said the estimates indicate clearly that efforts in this regard need to be intensified.

    The report examined child labour in Malawi in the hazardous industries of tobacco, mining, quarrying and construction.

    It noted that the Malawi government had spread efforts to protect tenants since 1992 and introduced a new labour law in 2012 that explicitly prohibits the employment of children under 18 years old.

    “However, children are still employed in tobacco estates and enforcement is a critical issue,’’ the report said.

  • Environmentalist calls for ‘trash blindness’ sensitisation

    Environmentalist calls for ‘trash blindness’ sensitisation

    An environmentalist, Mr Emmanuel Emechete on Tuesday called for advocacy and sensitisation of Nigerians on the dangers of indiscriminate littering.

    Emechete, also a climate change expert made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.

    He said that indiscriminate littering, also known as “trash blindness’’, due to the adverse effects on the environment and on public health.

    “Trash blindness basically implies negligence to trash. It is when individuals choose to litter their environs without considering the negative impact on the atmosphere.

    “Basically, to curtail the trash blind tendencies among Nigerians, we need a lot of enlightenment and education on the adverse effect of a polluted environment.

    “We need to inform Nigerians on the dangers of indiscriminate littering and the side effects on not just the environment but our health.
    “Littering contributes immensely to drainage blockage.

    “The government as well as environmental stakeholders must embark on intense advocacy; we need to talk to people about trash issues.

    “Once people can understand that trash blindness is a problem, we need to provide an alternative. If you say do not litter indiscriminately, then you need to provide the alternative,’’ he said.

    Emechete called for provision of alternatives for trashing waste and not paying lip service to combating trash blindness syndrome by placing sanctions where necessary.

    “We need to provide alternatives for people to trash their wastes; we must back our advocacy with actions if we are to solve the syndrome of trash blindness,’’ he said.

    The environmentalist urged that waste bins be provided on every street, walkways and commercial buses, among others, with conspicuous signs posted to direct people where to dispose wastes.

    He said that arrangement should be put in place for prompt disposal of these waste bins to ensure sanitary condition of the environment.

    “The government can also place sanctions against indiscriminate littering and it should be done with caution to avoid abused by the regulators who extort Nigerians.

    “Sanctions should not be paramount, but the sensitisation of Nigerians on trash blindness should be on the front burner.

    “Recently, we have heard reports of people drowning in floods as a result of blocked drainages which are remote causes of trash blindness.’’

    Emechete said that if Nigerians could see the impact of trash blindness on the health, family, wellbeing and even on climate change, they would be more cautious as compared to having fear for sanctions.

    “We should start first with enlightenment and education and if it does not work, we can now place sanctions on defaulters.

    “Advocacy and provision for alternative trashing of waste should be put in place before the resort to sanctions on indiscriminate littering of waste,’’ Emechete said.

  • Group plants 12,000 trees in Jigawa

    Group plants 12,000 trees in Jigawa

    The Green Network Initiative Forum in Jigawa said on Monday that it has planted 12,748 tree seedlings in some parts of the state to check desertification.

    The forum made the revelation during the flag off a fresh round of planting for its 2019 annual tree planting campaign with 500 seedlings at the palace of Emir of Gumel, Alhaji Ahmed Muhammed.

    Other seedlings were planted around the palace, some at Gumel main graveyard, some in primary schools, along major roads, while others were given to interested individuals to plant on their farmlands and residences.

    The Coordinator of the Forum, Suleiman Tijjani, during the flag-off of the annual tree-planting campaign at Gumel Local Government Area of the state said the group targets strategic locations for its tree planting to ensure success.

    “This forum, since its creation in 2016, has been able to plant at least 12,748 assorted tree seedlings in schools, MDAs, health facilities, public buildings and strategic points to check desertification,” Tijjani said.

    “The forum has also conducted drain clearance in several parts of Dutse, the state capital in order to ensure a clean environment. So, we are gathered here in Gumel to flag off the 2019 tree planting campaign initiated by this forum.”

    He further described tree planting as vital for the environment, urging residents to avoid indiscriminate felling of trees, especially those by the roadsides.

    “You see, people must always protect their environment by planting more trees as they beautify as well as protect the environment. So the forum feels it should contribute its quota in protecting and beautifying the environment through the planting of trees, “Tijjani added at the flag off of the campaign tagged ‘One man, one tree’.

    “Therefore, the forum will remain committed through action, creating awareness and sensitisation through various means in making the environment clean and green.”

    He said that the forum also planned to further plant millions of assorted tree seedlings to assist in controlling erosion and desert encroachment in the state.

    The coordinator further stated that the major objectives of the forum were making societies clean and green through planting and protection of trees, environmental sanitation, creating awareness on the importance of trees and environmental sanitation.

    “We want also to see that individuals contribute their own quota in complementing governmental efforts in combating the menace of climate change, change in rainfall pattern, desertification, erosion, flooding and diseases associated to untidy environment,” he said.

    In his remarks, the Emir of Gumel commended the forum for the gesture, saying that it would go a long way in checking desertification in the area.

    “We are extremely happy with this tree-planting campaign. This is because desertification is what we are battling with because of our closeness to Niger Republic.

    “We are just 20 kilometres away from Niger republic and we are threatened by desert encroachment. However, these trees planted today will contribute immensely in tackling the menace,” the emir said.

    The monarch urged residents to take good care of the seedlings by nurturing them to maturity.

  • Climate change, root of crisis in Northeast – Environmentalists

    Climate change, root of crisis in Northeast – Environmentalists

    Coalitions of environmentalists have asked the Federal Government to address the challenges of climate change and environmental degradation in the country, noting that these are the source of humanitarian crises in the North-East and other parts of the country.

    The Nigerian Conservation Foundation, Civil Society Network for the Lake Chad Basin in the North East Nigeria, the Humanitarian Forum, UK with the support of the International Islamic Charity Organisation made the call at a two-day workshop in Abuja, themed, ‘Resilience agenda: Natural disasters and climate change – How are we managing risks and crises differently in North-East Nigeria?’

    Along with about 20 civil society organisations from the six states in North-Nigeria, representatives of government agencies, UN agencies, international NGOs and security agencies, the gathering examined climate change as a risk factor for disaster.

    The Director General of NCF, Dr Muhtari Aminu-Kano said climate change and forms of environmental degradation were at the root of the humanitarian crises in the North-East such as shrinking of the Lake Chad, drought and desertification, deforestation and land degradation.

    Along with about 20 civil society organisations from the six states in North-Nigeria, representatives of government agencies, UN agencies, international NGOs and security agencies, the gathering examined climate change as a risk factor for disaster

    The President of Civil Society Network for the Lake Chad Basin, Ambassador Shehu Ahmed, emphasised the need for the Federal Government, international organisations and corporate citizens to rise up to help.

    “Disasters and climate change impact on lives, livelihoods and economic development. People living in poor and developing countries bear the highest risk for disaster,” Ahmed said.

    “Impacts of disasters and climate change set back and undermine development efforts. Climate change is causing an increase in frequency and intensity of certain weather-related disaster events. These are some of the reasons we should take action immediately.”

    He stated that disasters and climate change could impact on lives, livelihoods and economic development, adding that people living in poor and developing countries were bearing the highest risk of disasters.

    The Country Director of IICO, Abdulwasea Adesina, also made an appeal to the participants not to end the discussion at the workshop but implement all the proposals from different relevant quarters.

  • Gombe tackles desertification with 3G tree planting initiative

    Gombe tackles desertification with 3G tree planting initiative

    Volunteers in Gombe State on Wednesday began the planting of four million trees throughout the state to mitigate the menace of desertification.

    The initiative tagged ‘Gombe Goes Green, 3G initiative’ was flagged of by the state governor, Inuwa Yahaya.

    The governor noted at the flag off in Dukku Local Government Area of the state that over 86, 000 tree seedlings had been planted in nine local government areas and several nurseries established in various communities.

    He said deforestation, poor land use and other human activities were some of the major causes of flooding and erosion, which according to him, result in the destruction of agricultural lands, lives and properties of Gombe people.

    He stated that the project demonstrated his administration’s commitment to addressing the myriad environmental challenges affecting the State.

    “ Through 3G, we will continue to take necessary measures aimed at increasing the adaptive capacity toward reducing the negative impact of flood and erosion on the populace.

    “ There will be awareness creation and sensitisation geared toward attitudinal change in relating with the environment; establishment of shelter belt, woodlots and cover crops to reduce impact of water runoff and loss of the top soil.

    “Also, there will be campaign on reduction of drainage blockages; proper layout and planning of settlement that allows free flow of water along water ways; and construction of drainage.

    “These efforts would help reduce vulnerability to these occurrences, ensure sustained food production and improve the socio-economic wellbeing of the people of Gombe State in the face of unceasing flood and erosion menace.

    The governor emphasised that it was an obligation for everyone to give priority attention to, if we must halt desert encroachment and other environmental challenges facing us.

    While acknowledging poverty as major reasons for environmental degradation, especially desertification which is largely caused by indiscriminate cutting of trees for firewood, he assured the people of assistance in that regard.

    “We are already making concerted effort in seeking partnership with international donor agencies to provide affordable, alternative low energy cooking facilities that would reduce the pressure on our forest,” he said.

    He added that the state government had recently paid N500 million as counterpart contribution to the World Bank to access funds for the gully erosions in two sites within Gombe Township.

    He called on community leaders and individuals to support the Project in fighting the menace of desert encroachment and erosion by protecting the trees planted as well as planting more at every available space in their environment.

    On his part, Alhaji Abdulkadir Rashid II, Emir of Dukku, thanked Gov. Yahaya and pledged his commitment towards ensuring the success of the project in his domain.

  • The Amazon Rainforest is burning and this is why it concerns you

    The Amazon Rainforest is burning and this is why it concerns you

    The Amazon rainforest is the largest in the world also housing most of the worlds species — flora and fauna. It accounts for more than half of the volume of remaining rainforests on earth and is credited with generating more than 20 percent of the oxygen used all over the world.

    For about three weeks now, wildfires have been clearing out swathes of land in the Amazon and it is alarming. Environmental organisations and researchers are accusing cattle ranchers and loggers who want to clear and utilize the land for the unprecedented destruction. The environmentalists claim that the ranchers and loggers are emboldened by Brazil’s pro-business president, Jair Bolsonaro.

    Brazil is home to about 60 percent of the Amazonia, while Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana house what is left of the 5,500,000 km² forest. The Amazonia is a bulwark of conservation and one of the last line of defence against global warming. The forest is a major greenhouse gases sink.

    If the forest is lost to these wildfires, about 2.5 million insect species, at least 40,000 plant species, 2,200 fishes, 1,294 birds, 427 mammals, 428 amphibians, and 378 reptiles which have been scientifically classified in the region may be lost forever.

    “The vast majority of these fires are human-lit,” said Christian Poirier, the program director of non-profit organization Amazon Watch. He added that even during dry seasons, the Amazon — a humid rainforest — doesn’t catch on fire easily, unlike the dry bushland in California or Australia.

    The French president, Emmanuel Macron described the wildfires as “international crisis” , calling on the G7 to make the issue a top priority at its summit.

    According to satellite imagery reports from Brazil’s National Institute of Space Research (INPE), there have been 74,155 fires in the Amazon since the beginning of the year 2019 so far, representing an 84 per cent increase from the same period last year.

    Meanwhile, President Bolsonaro is counter-accusing the Environmental organisations of been responsible for the fires.

    “Maybe – I am not affirming it – these (NGO people) are carrying out some criminal actions to draw attention against me, against the government of Brazil,” Bolsonaro told reporters in Brasília, the capital of Brazil.

    “It could be ranchers. Everyone is suspicious, but the biggest suspicion comes from NGOs.”

    He expressed suspicion that the NGOs are trying to make him look bad because they have lost funding since he became president.

  • Gombe losing 600m of land to desert encroachment annually, says GGP

    Gombe losing 600m of land to desert encroachment annually, says GGP

    The Gombe State Greener Project (GGP) has called for urgent action as the the rate of desert encroachment in the state hits 600 metres per annum.

    Acting Coordinator of GGP, Muhammad Tasiu made the call recently, warning that the phenomenon is degrading lands in the northern parts of the state.

    He noted that the menace prompted the establishment of the GGP, which is aimed at planting one million trees every year.

    “Our target is to plant four million trees in four years of this administration,” Taisu said.

    He explained the project is a mechanism the state government is putting in place to arrest the menace, which has claimed over 12 kilometres of land across the state in the last two decayed.

    “The environmental challenges in Gombe State is not limited to desertification. We are also prone to erosion problem, especially in the Gombe metropolis where we have severe gully erosion, the planting of more trees could also arrest the situation,” the Acting coordinator said.

    He added that about 11 non-governmental organisations had been engaged for the smooth running of the GGP which is in four sections.

    “The first component of the project is to plant trees in residential areas and in public places as well as in schools and to sensitise residents on the need and benefit of tree planting. It will also encourage planting of trees in our places of worship,” he pointed out.

    He noted that the project has creation of shelter belt in four local government areas in the northern part of the state.

    “We are working on the modalities of establishing the shelter belt which would arrest the issue of desert encroachment in the north,” he said.

    On the sustainability of the trees when planted, Muhammad explained that the project had entered into agreement with the Youth Empowerment and Social Support Operation (YESSO).

    ‘‘YESSO, a World Bank-assisted project in Gombe State will employ 27,000 youths that will watch over the trees and make sure they survive and grow. They will be paid N7, 500 every month’’ he said.

    He said another dimension of the project is how to address the issue indiscriminate felling of trees in the state.

    He lamented that on average, about 1000 trees are felled by firewood sellers’ everyday in Gombe State “and they don’t plant any tree. That is also a major challenge that the government want to look into.”

    The government official said the project would be flagged off by Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya within the second week of August and those sites for the pilot project have been identified.

  • Nigerians express concern over alarming deforestation rate

    Nigerians express concern over alarming deforestation rate

    Conservationists and environment experts in Nigeria think the rate of deforestation in the country calls for a state of emergency declaration. This reaction follows the revelation that the country loses between 450,000 and 600,000 hectares of forest to deforestation annually to rank among the countries with the highest rate of deforestation in the world.

    The National Coordinator, Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project, Dr Salisu Dahiru, made the shocking revelation in Benin, while delivering the 10th Environmental Outreach Magazine public lecture Last week.

    In his talk tittled, “Managing land degradation in Nigeria; the challenges, action and remediation”, Dahiru noted that 24 billion tons of fertile soil are lost every year globally, while 7.3 million of hectares of forest are lost yearly globally.

    “Nigeria is said to be one of the countries with the highest deforestation rate in the world with about 450,000 to 600,000 hectares of forest lost annually,” he said.

    He identified population pressure, deforestation, bush burning, over grazing, agricultural depletion of soil nutrients through poor farming, inappropriate irrigation and indiscriminate mining as some the causes of land degradation in Nigeria.

    While saying that NEWMAP had succeeded in reclaiming some of the land lost to degradation, he noted that inconsistency in policies, inadequate budgetary allocation and unhealthy rivalry between environmental agencies were affecting management of degradation and deforestation in the country.

    Dahiru said policy execution as well as stakeholders’ cooperation was needed in managing land degradation.

    Reacting to the revelation on social media, Nigerians called for awareness and proper orientation of citizens on the matter so that individuals can know the roles they can play in preventing further loss.

    “Awareness and aggressive sensitization needed on the importance of conserving our forests, they must be,” Bashir Abayomi Ibrahim, tweeted.

    “The ministry of environment should do more especially in terms of awareness and enlightening the population,” UMHashim added.