Climate Change: Niger Bans Tree Cutting, Creates Agency For Green Initiative

The Niger State government, on Tuesday, announced a ban on felling of trees across the state to preserve the environment against the negative effects of climate change.

Speaking to Journalists, Commissioner of Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, Yakubu Kolo, said the state has a law mandating people to plant more than three trees in their various homes.

According to Kolo, felling of trees for charcoal is a major challenge that fuels and causes deforestation.

“We have banned so many things, including illegal tree cutting. We have laws that also require people to plant trees around homes.

“There’s a law we have in the ministry that gives the ministry power to ensure that at least in every home, you must plant at least two to four trees around your environment, and then there’s also a law that stops people from cutting down trees.

“One of the major challenges we face in Niger is this charcoal making. If you travel between Bida and Jebba, you will see a lot of bags of charcoal. These are major challenges, and they are also causes of deforestation.

“Not only cutting the trees, they cut some of these economic trees, like the shea butter tree, which is one of the trees we promote,” he said.

Kolo said just two days earlier, Niger State governor, Mohammed Umar Bago commissioned one of the biggest shea butter plants in the state.

“So with this, the state is on its own to ensure that no illegal activity, as far as cutting down trees and making charcoal in the state, takes place,” Kolo said.

The commissioner also disclosed that the state government has established a new agency called the Niger State Agency for Green Initiative, and also pursued the establishment of Special Agro-industrial Processing Zones across the State.

Kolo stated that the state government was coordinating different sectors to ensure that climate change, which include flooding, were tackled headlong.

“The moment His Excellency, Governor of Niger State, Mohammed Umar Bago assumed office, he picked an interest in climate change. As a result of that, we hosted the world and the nation to a summit, the Niger State Green Economy Summit, which was the first of its kind by a regional government in Nigeria,” Kolo said.

According to the Commissioner, the state established the State Agency for Green Initiative, with a DG appointed and backed by the law from the state Assembly.

“That summit developed a blueprint guiding the state on climate activities. The blueprint has mandated different sectors of the economy in the state, particularly those that have to do with climate activities.

“With that blueprint, we have also been able to establish the Niger State Agency for Green Initiative, with a DG appointed and backed by the law from the Niger State House of Assembly.

“This agency is working and coordinating different sectors to ensure that issues that have to do with climate change, which of course includes incidents like the Mokwa flooding, are tackled.”

On the establishment of Special Agro-industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ), the Niger State Commissioner revealed that, “The Niger State airport city is also being developed into a special agro-processing zone.

“We are partnering with China, and the state government has secured some funding from China.”

He stated that the state has four locations for the SAPZ with two in Mokwa, “and we have one in Niger State, which is the airport.”