Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) has partnered with Anamelo Forest Concession Limited (AFCL) to engage in aggressive tree planting and responsible forest management to allay fears of Nigeria becoming a desert.
This followed the move by the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF), to restore Nigeria’s forest cover to at least 25% through the Green Recovery Nigeria (GRN) Initiative – a multi-stakeholder platform for re-greening the nation’s landscape.
In a statement made available in Lagos, the NCF through the GRN Initiative, aimed to nip the gloomy but probable prediction that Nigeria’s landscape may wear a semblance devoid of forest cover over the next 30 years.
It stated that the NCF in collaboration with AFCL has launched a community engagement and tree-planting programme in Tumbuyan Village, Ilesha-Ibaruba, a community in Kwara State – to build local capacity in tree nursery operations, tree planting and woodlot establishment for energy purposes.
The CEO of AFCL, Mr. Edward Ayeni, stated that “it is the responsibility of economic actors in the forest sector to ensure the sustainability of the forest so as to secure their businesses and livelihoods.”
“Forest businesses will in the near future be constrained by the shrinking forest cover if actors fail to plough back into the environment,” he added.
He revealed that AFCL have been able to plant 7,000 seedlings in areas previously deforested with support from the Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria (FRIN) and NCF.
“An area measuring over 65 hectares of marginal land had been earmarked for rehabilitation in the coming years and AFCL will scale-up efforts in subsequent years to secure the livelihood of the communities through sustainable agro-forestry management” Ayeni said.
The Director General of NCF, Mr. Adeniyi Karunwi, said that “Forest is the backbone of rural economy,” hence the need to safeguard it.
“With NCF’s renewed role as the environmental watchdog and whistleblower, we are committed to our vision of a country where people live in harmony with nature,” he said.
Also, the Emir of the Ilesha-Ibaruba Kingdom, Professor Halidu Abubakar, who was impressed with the initiative, thanked AFCL, NCF, FRIN, Kwara State Ministry of the Environment and Habitat for bringing the community to limelight through the tree-planting initiative. He promised the support and commitment of the community to the project.
The NCF boss tasked forest stakeholders and users to refrain from unsustainable forest practices and report progress made in the area of forest landscape restoration in Nigeria for proper documentation and future reference.
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