* Ikeazor

 

The Minister of State for Environment, Ms Sharon Ikeazor, Thursday urged the National Assembly to fast-track action on the  Climate Change bill and get it passed into law

Ikeazor, who spoke at the opening of a 3-day National Council on Environment meeting  in Abuja expressed elation that  the bill has already passed second reading on the floor of the House of Representatives

"Passing the Climate Change bill into law has become necessary in order to activate the  legal instrument that would address the myriads of Climate Change actions and challenges facing Nigeria" she opined

Declaring the 3-day Council open, the Minister applauded the resilience of the critical stakeholders during this trying period of COVID-19 pandemic. 

“Your participation in this event is a testimony to your unwavering faith in our collective resolve to reverse all adversities in the sector and sustainably manage our Environment in the face of the multiple concerns exacerbated by the novel COVID-19 pandemic”, she maintained

According to the Minister, the theme of the #meeting: “Managing Emerging Environmental challenges: Need for Strategic Approach to Sustainable Development in COVID-19 era and beyond” seems strategically chosen to underscore the realities of global health challenges occasioned by the pandemic and the need to tackle the attendant issues to ameliorate the environmental and developmental consequences that may confront our nation if we fail to act now.”


* Onuigbo

The Minister maintained that: “As a sector, the need for us to deliberate on the increasing concerns with a view to generating actionable policy framework and measures to guide our actions towards addressing these emerging concerns is uppermost”

Ikeazor urged the participants to engage their various experiences, expertise and ingenuity during the 3-day event towards finding lasting solutions to the multifaceted environmental challenges confronting our nation that include biodiversity loss, Climate Change and Covid-19 pandemic.

The Senate Committee on Environment, in its goodwill message to the Conference,  called for the involvement of more Non-Governmental Organizations in the ministry’s activities as most of its activities are grassroots oriented that require a lot of mobilization and enlightenment.

The Senate Committee chairman,  Senator Micheal Nnachi who delivered the message added that the Upper Chamber is  very much aware of the lean envelope of the Ministry despite its enormous responsibilities, and therefore assured that positive reviews are being made to facilitate and boost its funding window

Dailyledger.com.ng reports that Hon. Sam Onuigbo, representing Ikwuano/Umuahia North/South Federal Constituency proposed the Climate Change bill and it was passed into law by the previous session of the National Assembly, but was denied Presidential assent