TheCable

Sharon Ikeazor, minister of state for the environment, says President Muhammadu Buhari has begun his tenure as the president of the great green wall in Africa for the next two years.

Ikeazor said this in Abuja at the end of the fourth ordinary session of the conference of heads of state and government (CHSG) of the Pan-African Agency for the great green wall (PAGGW).

She restated the president’s commitment at COP26, where he mentioned Africa’s ambition to restore over 100 million hectares of the degraded landscape for productive agriculture.

She also said the restoration of Africa’s degraded ecosystems and the strengthening of people’s resilience against climate change impacts will be prioritised.

“At the end of the fourth ordinary session of the CHSG, Nigeria took over the presidency of the PAGGW. So for the next two years, Nigeria and President Buhari will be the president of the great green wall initiative in Africa,” she said.

“This means that within the period, Nigeria will work assiduously towards addressing the problems of land degradation, food security, desertification, climate change, depletion of the forest ecosystems and biodiversity in Africa, among others.

“With the unparalleled commitment of the president on addressing issues of climate change and desertification, coupled with the immense respect he commands within the international community, a lot would be achieved during his tenure.

“It is instructive to note that in his acceptance speech of the PAGGW leadership, President Buhari stated that efforts will be strengthened in mobilising resources for the accelerated accomplishment of the decennial priority investment plan (DPIP) 2021-2030 and its concrete implementation action.”