An article in This Day reports on Nigerian Government’s commitment to the Great Green Wall initiative that may provide the basis for a sustainable green economy.
“Afforestation and tree planting remain the most strategic approaches to shield the environment from degradation,” says the article.
The Great Green Wall initiative was initially planned as a re-vegetated strip of land stretching from Djibouti in the east of Africa to Dakar in the west. It now involves 11 countries working together to not only plant trees but also address productivity in crop, livestock and forest landscapes.
The initiative is about more than just planting trees to tackle land degradation, it carries many attached benefits, including the creation of an expected 5,000 jobs in Nigeria, the provision of infrastructure, empowerment of rural farmers and assistance to communities to improve their farming and agricultural activities. The planting of trees will also help to prevent erosions and store carbon
Stakeholders have been urged to support specific areas of the project that include agroforestry, farmer managed natural regeneration, nursery rehabilitation, shelterbelt establishment, dune stabilization, integrated water and natural resources management, trans-boundary ecosystem management, and the development of alternative sources of energy.
Read the full story: Nigeria: Entrenching a Sustainable Green Economy
