Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu
By Emmanuel Adeniyi
Climate change: Sanwo-Olu throws up 20, 000 one-year-tree planting challenge
…says Lagos will be more decisive in tree planting action
The Lagos State Government has reiterated its commitment to proffer solutions to climate change, declaring resolve to embark on massive tree projects in the next one year.
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu declared this in commemoration of Lagos State Tree Planting Day at the 2024 tree planting ceremony which was held at the Lagos House Marina on Sunday, throwing up a challenge of planting about 20, 000 trees in one year.
Sanwo-Olu who said Lagos city “is not overbuilt that the state cannot receive up to 20, 000 trees in one year”, threw the challenge of achieving the feat to the Lagos State Parks and Gardens Agency.
Sanwo-Olu said there was a need for a deliberate and concerted effort to change the mentality the people have towards climate change to save lives and the environment at large.
“As a foremost State, Lagos has to be intentional and very proactive in its resolve to take back our environment, and as a government, we are engaging within ourselves to ensure we raise the bar.
“We have planned to ensure we plant a lot of trees this year alone and we monitor their growth while we sustain or improve this number every year to keep ourselves alive.
“I have spoken to the head of our agency to design ways to achieve growth consistency in this fight for our lives and environment,” the Governor emphasised.
He added, “Why this is important is that it is also a demonstration of our government’s commitment. For all of us to have taken time to come out this morning signifies that we believe in our tree planting initiative.
“As an ornament that can propel some of the conversation, we are trying to pass across for the environment and water resource ministry. I have said it is not about the two or three minutes that we spend here.”
The governor said it was important to do everything humanly possible to mitigate the effect of climate change.
“It’s about how we take our conversation forward into every sphere of life of several millions of residents that are not here today.
“Part of our strategy is where we can attempt to save our environment to curb the surge of climate change is by tree planting, it’s been proven, it’s been seen.
“It’s something that we must as a government deliberately set out a strategy to do. Tree planting should be a daily, weekly and monthly activity, we shouldn’t wait for another year,” he said.
The Governor called on the General Manager, LASPARK, Mrs. Adetoun Popoola, to ensure that planting trees in the state is not just a yearly event.
“So that we can achieve the number of trees that we should be planting, by the time we come next year, July 14, we should hold the LASPARK GM accountable.
“I have encouraged her to come up with an efficient scheme that both the private and public sector will work on.
“The city is not overbuilt that the state cannot receive up to 20, 000 trees in the next one year, that is the challenge we will pass on to LASPARK so that we will have an environment better than we met it,” he said.
The Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, speaking on the theme for this year’s tree planting “Nurture Our Future”, said “As a government we should be able to plant a lot more trees in the next 12 months, but beyond that, it’s for us to be able to put an activity around it, a ceremony where we will applaud tree planting marshals so that it can grow organically.”
Wahab said that the event underscored the efforts to protect the future while taking full ownership to develop a better environmental habit for a quality impact on climate change.
“As a government, it is our collective responsibility that we develop strategic methods to improve the environment, ensure that it is flood-free and make it conducive for residents.
“This can be achieved through the continuous cleaning of the environment from time to time. It is our goal today to further educate residents on the need to take ownership of their environment and ensure that they continuously clean their surroundings and dispose of waste responsibly.
“We acknowledge that we must sustain this as our own contribution towards maintaining a sustainable environment,” the Commissioner said.
The General Manager, LASPARK, Mrs Adetoun Popoola in her closing remarks promised that she and her team will continue to ensure that tree planting is not just a yearly event.
She expressed gratitude to Governor Sanwo-Olu “for taking out time to participate in this year’s event” and equally thanked the Commissioner for “his unwavering support to the Agency and in championing all environmental issues in the State.”
“Our theme, “Nurture our Future,” is therefore a call to action. It is a reminder that the decisions we make today will shape the world we live tomorrow,” she said.