The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) will promote forest conservation activities to reduce the impact of climate change in the country.
Secretary, FCT Agriculture and and Rural Development Secretariat, Lawan Kolo Geidam, gave this assurance, when the Director-General of the Nigeria Conservation Foundation, Dr. Onoja Jones Daniel, paid him a visit in his office.
The Secretary said that forest conservation will go a long way in drastically reduce the impact of climate change with its attendant effects.
Geidam stated that the FCT Administration will do everything possible to support any initiative that will enhance sustainable Forest management practices in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
He, however, expressed concern, that the FCT has suffered a great deal of loss of trees and forest resources as a result of the rapid rate of infrastructural development without recourse to the impact on the environment.
His words: “The surge in infrastructural development and human settlements has severely depleted our forests, leading to extensive habitat destruction and environmental degradation.”
The Secretary, thus, emphasized the need for urgent action to address the situation.
Geidam disclosed that despite initiatives through proactive engagement of rural communities to educate them on the consequences of forest mismanagement, particularly its effects on climate change and biodiversity, alot still needed to be done.
He noted that the recruitment of forest guards by the Administration which was aimed at policing the forest against harmful practices such as bush burning, illegal logging among others, is beginning to yield
noticeable positive improvements.
While commending the Director-General on the various initiatives of NCF, Geidam expressed the readiness of his Secretariat to collaborate with the foundation towards developing and implementing new strategies to ensure that the forests are well managed and conserved for the future generation.
On his part, the Director-General of the Nigeria Conservation Foundation, Dr. Onoja Jones Daniel, underscored the urgent need for the Administration to introduce more stringent measures to protect the forest reserves and the green areas.
Daniel stressed the importance of collective action in enabling Nigeria to fulfill its commitments under the global accord, which stipulates a target for each country to safeguard a minimum of 30% of its terrestrial and aquatic habitats by the year 2030;
saying that his Agency is determined to achieve the 30% by 2030.
“This ambitious goal is unattainable without governmental backing, and that is why the NCF is eager to partner with the FCT Administration to realize this vision,” Daniel asserted.
