TheCable

Godwin Emefiele, Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), says banks will now consider sustainable banking principles when lending money to individuals and corporate entities.

Emefiele said this on Thursday while planting trees at the CBN head office to mark the 2021 World Environment Day with a focus on ecosystem restoration and the theme, “Reimagine. Recreate. Restore.”

Every year, June  5, is celebrated as the world environment day. It is a day set aside to raise awareness on the problems facing the environment such as air pollution, deforestation, illegal wild trade, plastic pollution, sea-level rise, food security while driving change in national and international environmental policies.

The governor said that the Nigerian banking sector is committed to protecting the environment by ensuring that banks adopt principles of sustainable banking when they offer credit. 

He encouraged Nigerians to make the environment green by restoring the ecosystem and avoiding pollutants that destroy the earth. 

“There is the need for the environment to go green. We must join the global community to ensure that we clean the environment and rid the ecosystem of pollutants that are harmful to us,” he said.

According to the United Nations, this year’s world environment day will kick off the UN decade on ecosystem restoration (2021-2030), a global mission to revive billions of hectares, from forests to farmlands, from the top of mountains to the depth of the sea.