World Environment Day: NNPC Foundation seeks to mitigate desertification, degradation
By Emmanuella Anokam
The NNPC Foundation Ltd. says it is focused on mitigating land erosion, desertification and drought by re-vegetating the environment through aggressive tree planting campaigns.
Mrs Emmanuella Arukwe, the Managing Director, NNPC Foundation Ltd., said this at the 2024 World Environment Day (WED) in partnership with the Ministry of Environment on Wednesday in Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the WED is celebrated globally every June 5.
The theme for 2024: “Land Restoration, Desertification and Drought Resilience.”
Arukwe who described the environment as being intricate noted that it must be preserved by creating a balance in the ecosystem.
Arukwe, represented by Mr Aminu Muazu, Executive Director, Programme Management, NNPC Foundation, said environmental degradation could be mitigated through partnership with relevant government agencies.
According to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, about 40 per cent of the world’s land is degraded, directly affecting half of the global population, threatening economies and means of livelihood.
The convention also said that drought increased by 29 per cent since the year 2000 and if persistent, may effect over three quarters of the global population by 2050.
Nigeria, according to the United Nations, has the highest deforestation rate in the world, with an estimated 3.7 per cent of its forest lost every year.
She said that 15 out of the 35 states, predominantly in the northern part of the country, are affected by desertification.
Arukwe added that 63.3s per cent of the country’s entire land mass suffer desert encroachment.
She said land mass vegetation, farmlands agro-economies and other means of livelihood in the country were fast being overtaken by the twin challenge of desertification and drought.
Based on this, she said part of its efforts at the NNPC Foundation, was to mitigate land erosion, desertification and drought by re-vegetating the environment, through aggressive tree planting campaigns.
“I extend to you compliments from the NNPC Ltd. management and its Group Chief Executive Officer, Malam Mele Kyari, who is passionate about executing positive and impactful Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programmes in the country.
“As a recently transited privately company, NNPC Ltd. is positioned to align with global best practice in the energy industry and is committed to the Sustainable Development Goals.
“The NNPC Foundation was established as the social arm of NNPC Ltd. to be the connect between the stakeholders who are the over 200 million Nigerians and the company, through execution of impactful and sustainable CSR initiatives/projects.
“One of the key focus areas of NNPC Foundation is to undertake impactful initiatives on environment and in commemoration of the 2024 World Environment Day; we have lined up strategic programmes.
“These include tree planting campaigns in schools, sponsorship of quizzes/competitions to celebrate the day, presentations to school children and other events all targeted to sensitising the citizenry on environmental preservation,” she said.
She said our existence with that of our environment was interwoven and we were mutually bound to our environment and must be careful not to hurt it through our activities.
She listed such activities as tree cutting, indiscriminate timber logging business, bush burning and others, adding that by so doing, we tend to hurt our own very existence.
Arukwe called for collective affirmative action of responsibility for the survival of our immediate environment and in essence, bring about positive spiral effects of our action to the global habitat.
“It is most pertinent that we intentionally work toward sustaining the balance in our ecosystem, by keeping our planet replenished with its natural forms and maintain its equilibrium,” she said.
NAN reports that the highlights of the event were environmental preservation sensitisation, enlightenment programmes and ceremonial tree planting at some schools in the Federal Capital Territory. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
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Edited by Chinyere Joel-Nwokeoma
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