The federal government has urged Nigerians to take planting of trees seriously so as to help mitigate the negative impacts of climate change affecting the world.
Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume made the call at the project launch of the “One Woman, One Tree Initiative” by the Hope Alive Foundation held at Merit House, Abuja on Thursday.
Akume who expressed worry over the rate at which climate change was fast becoming a threat to humanity also called for all hands on deck to help cushion the current reality.
On his part, Director General, National Council on Climate Change, Dr Salisu Dahiru said women were most vulnerable to the negative impacts of climate change and gender inequality has further exacerbated the impacts.
Dahiru maintained that tree planting contributes to carbon sequestration, which helps mitigate climate change, serve as carbon sinks, capturing and storing significant amounts of carbon thereby making a natural solution to combat climate change.
Founder, Hope Alive Foundation who is also the House of Representatives Member for Gboko/Tarka Federal Constituency, Hon Regina Akume said that the foundation was established to empower to participate in climate change mitigation efforts, promote sustainable livelihoods and economic empowerment for women through tree planting and agroforestry restore degraded landscapes and enhance ecosystem resilience as well as raising awareness about the importance of environmental conservation and community resilience to climate change.
Hope Alive Foundation, a non-governmental organization (NGO) which was first launched in 2002 is focused on addressing the needs of vulnerable people in the middle-belt region of Nigeria.
