The Minister of State for the Environment, Barr. Sharon Ikeazor, has reaffirmed the commitment of the Federal Government toward promoting and boosting environmental conservation in the country.
This is in a bid to guarantee the sustainability of Nigeria’s biodiversity and exotic ecosystem for the livelihoods of its teeming citizens.
Ikeazor made this known when she received ECOWAS advisor, Dr. Adewale Adeleke, who led a delegation of the West Africa Biodiversity and Low Emission Development Project (WABILED) on a working visit to her office in Abuja.
“The sustenance of the nation’s biodiversity is a core priority of the federal government.
“The fact is, we have not paid attention to the issue of conservation in the past. But now, it is an area of focus for us. Our life and livelihood depend on the ecosystem. Hence, we must put a deliberate effort towards boosting biodiversity conservation.”
Ikeazor explained that working with other ministers of the environment in Africa Nigeria will ensure that Africa makes a statement among the committee of nations in the forthcoming COP27 slated for Egypt later in the year.
She assured that her ministry “will support every effort at conservation and wildlife protection as we look forward to COP27, making sure that Africa presents a strong voice as we continue to work with other ministers of the environment from Africa”.
Ikeazor appealed for the support of WABILED in the implementation of Nigeria’s Wildlife Strategy Plan, as well as the signing of the Trans-boundary Memorandum of Understanding with the Republic of Cameroun, which she described as “key to the nation’s conservation efforts”.
Earlier in his remarks, Adeleke noted that the mission of the WABILED delegation to the ministry was to appreciate the Federal Government’s role in the conservation and sustainable management of the country’s natural resources.
A statement by the ministry’s director of press, Saghir el Mohammed, said Adeleke solicited Nigeria’s support for the final endorsement of the ‘West Africa Strategy for Combating Wildlife Crime’ by the ECOWAS Ministerial Council and Heads of State Summit.
