Precious Nwonu, Enugu
The Federal Government has urged charcoal merchants and other stakeholders in the forestry and agricultural sectors to adopt sustainable practices to curb deforestation and restore Nigeria’s degraded forests.
The Minister of Environment, Balarabe Lawal, gave the warning on Wednesday at the launch of the 2026 Operation One Million Trees programme organised by the Association for Forest Conservation and Green Industrial Charcoal Merchants at the University of Ibadan.
Represented by Dr Osakwe Igbinosa, Lawal described deforestation as a major threat to Nigeria’s environment and economic development, stressing the need for stronger efforts to protect and restore the country’s forests.
He identified tree planting and forest restoration as important measures for tackling climate change, protecting biodiversity, combating desertification and improving the resilience of ecosystems.
The minister said the Federal Ministry of Environment was implementing several programmes aimed at increasing forest cover, including the 2026 National Afforestation Programme, Sovereign Green Bond Afforestation Programme and the National Greening of Cities and Urban Areas initiative.
He said the Operation One Million Trees campaign aligned with the government’s environmental restoration efforts and urged participants to comply with forestry laws and regulations.
Lawal cautioned that the success of tree-planting campaigns should not be judged solely by the number of seedlings planted, but by their survival and development into healthy trees.
“Tree planting is not just about putting seedlings into the soil. The real measure of success is their survival and growth into healthy forests,” he said.
The Chairman of the association, Adeshola Idowu, urged charcoal producers and other Nigerians to replace trees removed from the environment and adopt practices that would prevent further depletion of forest resources.
Idowu advocated planting several trees for every tree felled and called for greater use of technology, including drones, to facilitate tree planting in difficult-to-access areas.
The Oyo State Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, Ademola Aderinto, also warned that poor environmental practices could worsen climate change and waste management challenges.
Aderinto identified indiscriminate tree felling for housing, land development and business activities as major threats to biodiversity and food security.
He urged residents and developers to plant more trees whenever trees were removed for legitimate purposes, arguing that replacement should go beyond a one-for-one approach.
The commissioner also encouraged residents to make tree planting part of their daily environmental practices by planting trees around their homes, workplaces and other spaces.
Earlier, the Dean of the Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources at the University of Ibadan, Prof. Joke Akinyeleru, said the second year of the one-million-tree initiative demonstrated the institution’s commitment to practical action on environmental sustainability.
She said the programme supported the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly those relating to climate action.
The organisers said the initiative was also designed to promote sustainable charcoal production and encourage charcoal businesses to comply with environmental regulations.
They said partnerships with organisations including FOJ Multidynamic and Rasbat International Resources Limited would support the campaign, with technology such as drone seeding expected to expand tree-planting efforts and strengthen forest protection.
The Chief Strategy Officer of FOJ Multidynamic Interchange Nigeria Limited, Florence Omolola, said the three-day programme would focus on sensitisation, youth participation, tree planting and independent verification.
She said environmentalists, journalists, regulators, non-governmental organisations and other stakeholders would participate in the verification process to provide evidence of trees planted and promote transparency.
Omolola described the initiative as part of a broader effort to make charcoal production more environmentally sustainable, adding that the organisers hoped to expand the programme beyond its one-million-tree target in subsequent years.