Niger State has reaffirmed its commitment to advancing a green economy during its side event at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The Secretary to the State Government, Mr Abubakar Usman, announced that the state has developed essential frameworks to transition towards sustainable development and environmental preservation.
Building on its progress at COP28, Mr Usman highlighted Niger State’s determination to position itself as a leader in Nigeria’s sustainability efforts by utilising its rich natural resources and strategic initiatives.
“The Green Initiative was launched sometime last year by his Excellency, where we had the Green Economic Summit and since then, we have never stopped, from there, we went to the last COP before now and announced our presence.
“And today, here we are again with the follow-up of what we were able to do in the last year COP, before coming to this COP29, we made sure that we needed to do all we had to do, which had to do with the required framework.
“As you we all know, Niger States is endowed with natural resources, beginning from arable land, where we are sitting on 76,000 square kilometres square miles of land and many bodies of waters and many natural resources,” he said.
Mr Usman emphasised the state’s potential, noting its vast expanse of arable land, extensive water bodies, and abundant natural resources. He added that the government has engaged with international organisations to attract investments to support its green economy objectives.
“We are ready for collaboration. We are also discussing with other international agencies where we hope to go back home with some deals, of course, and that is quite visible. Like I said, we have come up with the necessary framework that will enable us to thrive in this cycle.
“We also have passed the necessary laws. We have appointed the necessary consultants, both local and international, and that is giving us edge over others and we are truly ready to go. And like you know, Agriculture is our main stay in Niger state and Nigeria at large and we are leveraging on that to make sure we truly drive the benefits of the green,” he explained.
The state’s Commissioner for Environment and Climate Change, Mr Yakubu Kolo, highlighted the support received from the State House of Assembly for initiatives such as afforestation, waste management, and renewable energy.
“Our participation in this year’s COP is to leverage the momentum we gained from COP28 and continue attracting global collaborations. Niger State is ready to lead in sustainability and green innovation,” Mr Kolo stated, expressing optimism for the state’s growing role in sustainability efforts.
