Category: Environment

‘Why Nigeria went to COP28 with 1,411 delegates’ – Presidency

Aminu Imam

The Federal Government has cleared the air on the huge number of delegates that the country has at the ongoing Climate Summit, (COP28), in Dubai. Nigeria has the third-highest number of delegates at COP28. The delegates’ number has been greeted by uproar and reproach as Nigerians, especially on social media, lambasted the government over the number of entourage and representatives amid widespread hardship and galloping inflation in the country. Reacting to the controversies surrounding the 1,411 Nigerian delegates, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi,…

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Niger Delta: Shell to face human rights claims in UK over chronic oil pollution

Aminu Imam

Thousands of Nigerian villagers can bring human rights claims against the fossil fuel company Shell over the chronic oil pollution of their water sources and destruction of their way of life, the high court in London has ruled. A judge, Mrs. Justice May ruled, this week, that more than 13,000 farmers and fishers from the Ogale and Bille communities in the Niger-Delta were entitled to bring legal claims against Shell for alleged breaches to their right to a clean environment. The judge ruled it was arguable the pollution had fundamentally…

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“Northern Nigeria mostly affected by climate change” – Environment Minister

Aminu Imam

Minister of State for Environment, Dr. Iziak Salako, has noted that the northern part of Nigeria is more vulnerable to climate change than other parts of the country. The Minister, who spoke during the launch of Report on ‘Mapping Climate Change Impact, Policy and Action in Nigeria’s 36 States including FCT‘, explained that the impact of climate change varies according to every region in the country. The Minister explained that the low rainfall in the region exposes the population, who are mostly farmers, to different climate change effects such as…

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Owners of unoccupied houses nationwide to pay triple ground rent – FG

Aminu Imam

The Federal Government says it will start charging owners of completed unoccupied houses triple ground rents instead of the single rate normally charged from three months after completion. Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed ?angiwa, said this in an interview with newsmen during site visits of housing projects constructed by the Government and its agencies yesterday, in Abuja. The Suleja (Dikko) Prototype, Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) Cooperative, Gwagwalada National Housing Programme and Guzape Federal Housing Authority (FHA) are also under the PPP arrangement. ?angiwa affirmed that the issue of completed…

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Jigawa spent N500m on toilets – Commissioner

Aminu Imam

The Jigawa State government says it has spent N500 million on the provision of improved latrines in schools, hospitals, markets and motor parks across the state. The Commissioner for Water Resources, Ibrahim Hannungiwa, who said this on Wednesday in Dutse, the State capital, also noted that the government had adopted pro-active measures to ensure the sustainability of its leading position as an ‘Open Defecation Free’ (ODF) State. According to Hannungiwa, the State is geared towards surpassing the nation’s ODF target by 2025. Hannungiwa said the feat was achieved by putting…

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FG vows to complete Abuja-Kaduna Road project by Q1, 2024

Aminu Imam

The Federal Ministry of Works and Housing has again given the assurance that the reconstruction work on the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano highway will be completed by the first quarter (Q1) of 2024. The Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Mahmuda Mamman, gave the assurance on Friday, during an inspection of the road and other ongoing federal road projects in Kaduna State. Mamman took a tour of the 375.9 kilometres of the dual carriageway, beginning from the Abuja end through Kaduna to Zaria and extending further to Kano, all in the North-West region. During…

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Lagos: Many feared dead as seven-storey building collapses

Aminu Imam

A seven-storey building has collapsed at Banana Island in Lagos State. The building, located in the posh neighbourhood of the State, is under construction when it collapsed with many workers are trapped beneath the rubble. It was however gathered that emergency responders are being mobilised to the scene of the incident. The Lagos Territorial Head of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) confirmed the incident in a brief update Wednesday evening. “A report of 7 Storey building under construction was just received at Banana Island. Workers trapped. We are mobilising…

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Ecological Funds Spending: SERAP sues Buhari over failure to probe ‘missing’ trillions’

Aminu Imam

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against President Muhammadu Buhari over “the failure to probe the spending of trillions of ecological funds by governments at all levels—federal, State and local governments from 2001 to date. Joined in the suit as Respondents are the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), and Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha. Recall that the United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF) recently stated that no fewer than 600 persons died and 1.3 million rendered…

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Flood: UNICEF raises alarm, says more than 1.5 million children at risk in Nigeria

Abdul-Azeez Ahmed Kadir

As the devastating floods  wreck havoc across Nigeria,  United Nations Children Education Funds says more than 2.5 million people in Nigeria are in need of humanitarian assistance, 60 per cent of which are children and are at increased risk of waterborne diseases, drowning and malnutrition. The floods, which have affected 34 out of the 36 states in the country, UNICEF says have displaced 1.3 million people, with over 600 people loosing their lives and over 200,000 houses either partially or fully damaged.  In a statement, UNICEF says cases of diarrhoea…

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Flood submerges 17 communities in Nasarawa Council

Abdul-Azeez Ahmed Kadir

Abdullahi Aliyu, Executive Chairman, Toto Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, has said that no fewer than 17 communities in the area have been submerged by flood following torrential rainfall on Tuesday. Aliyu stated this on Wednesday in Umaisha, Toto LGA, when he visited some of the affected communities to assess the level of devastation. The council chairman, who was represented by his Deputy, Abubakar Kwanaki, said that the visit was to ascertain the level of damage caused by the flood in the affected communities. “We are here to see things for ourselves,…

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