Minister of Environment, Hassan Suleiman Zarma has said that the Forestry Institute of Nigeria Ibadan, FRIN, has a very crucial role to play in the cleanup of Ogoniland especially in the re-establishment of the Mangroves and general restoration of remediated land.
The Minister who stated this at the weekend during his working visit to Ibadan, directed the institute to scale up its research efforts and training in addressing issues of gully erosion using biological means, desertification, pollution control and climate change
He noted that the Programmes of the institute cut across all areas of Biodiversity and affirmed that it is strategically placed to support and enable the achievements of National Afforestation targets through the production and improvement of indigenous species, establishment of exotic species, Timber utilization, Forest products and development, Bio-medicinal research, modelling forest growth, conservation of natural resources and environmental forestry and protection.
The Minister, who expressed delight with what he saw on ground, acknowledged that the Institute has become a model of innovation in its core mandate area and has demonstrated its capacity to deliver on Nigeria’s commitment to the Paris agreement on Climate Change.
“I am pleased to note that as the lead agency on the afforestation programme funded via the green bonds, there has been an achievement of an increase in our forest cover by 5%.
Zarma observed that it was in tandem with the Buhari-led administration’s commitment to address various developmental issues and concerns affecting our people and ecosystem.
The Director General of FRIN, DR. Adeshola Adepoju who conducted the Minister round the facilities of the institute, assured the Minister that FRIN will continue to do more towards providing afforestation cover for the country.
