The federal government has approved $8.5 million under the Presidential Initiative on Afforestation to restore degraded forests and critical landscapes across the country.
President Bola Tinubu announced this at the first international conference on afforestation and reforestation, held in Brazzaville, Congo, from July 2nd to 5th, 2024. Represented by the Minister of Environment, Balarabe Lawal, President Tinubu highlighted that this funding is in addition to other programs like the Great Green Wall Pan African Program and the Agro-Climatic Resilience Semi-Arid Landscape (ACReSAL), which have already restored over 1.5 million hectares of degraded forests.
President Tinubu reported the establishment of 1,428.9 km of shelterbelts covering 4,286 hectares, the empowerment of more than 200,000 forest community members, and the creation of over three million jobs for the youth.
“Nigeria has made significant progress in reversing forest cover loss through sustainable forest management and massive afforestation efforts,” Tinubu stated.
He continued, “To further support these efforts, the government recently approved $8.5 million under the Presidential Initiative on Afforestation. This funding aims to restore degraded forests and other critical landscapes across the country.”
President Tinubu also mentioned the strengthening of policy and legislative frameworks to address current and emerging challenges. He announced an interim suspension on the export of wood-based products to enable a thorough appraisal of the process and the establishment of a sustainable forest management trade system.
Tinubu reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to global, regional, and sub-regional agreements to promote sustainable forest management. “This includes the COP27 Africa and Global Decade of Afforestation and Reforestation, COP26 Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use, and other key outcomes of COP28,” he said.
The president emphasised that restoring forests should be a collective effort involving governments, non-governmental organizations, private sector entities, civil societies, and communities. “We should all strive to achieve the common goal of increasing global forest cover,” Tinubu concluded.
