By Rosemary Ogbonnaya
The Nigerian government on Tuesday hosted the 8th Ordinary Session of Council of Ministers of the Great Green Wall, GGW, member countries.
During the Council meeting, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Environment, Engr. Hassan Musa, has said that pragmatic efforts of GGW member countries to access the several billions of US Dollars pledged by a coalition of Technical and Financial Partners, TFPs, requires necessary evaluation.
Musa also stressed the need for mobilisation of financial resources to actualise the vision of the Great Green Wall, saying that Poor financial provision and mobilisation has been a major obstacle to the effective and impactful implementation process of the activities of GGW Initiative in virtually all the participating member states.
He explained that the recognition of the paucity of financial resources for the implementation of the Great Green Wall initiative led to the several billions of US Dollars pledged by a coalition of Technical and Financial Partners (TFPs) at the 4th Edition of the “One Planet Summit” on Climate Change and Biodiversity held in Paris, France on 11th of January, 2021.
“The need to come up with a well-articulated and actionable strategy for its mobilization of these pledged financial resources is expected at the end of this technical session. This done, the development of impact and transformative programmes and projects to absorb the mobilized resources would no doubt build the resilience of the Sahelian people,” he advised.
While officially declaring open the Technical Committee of Experts of the 8th Ordinary Session of the Council of Ministers of the Pan-African Agency of the Great Green Wall, the Permanent Secretary tasked Committee to do justice to Agenda items and come up with credible recommendations that would attract the blessings of the Council of Ministers when they deliberate on them.
Speaking also, Director General, GGW, DR. Yusuf Maina Bukar said
The technical committee of experts is a statutory meeting that deliberates on critical items and issues bordering implementation activities of the Great Green Wall.
Bukar recalled that at the 7th Ordinary Session of the Council of Ministers held in Nouakchott, Mauritania from 27-29th July, 2021, it was unanimously designated that Nigeria hosts the 8 Ordinary Session.
He expressed optimism that the Committee would show commitment during the plenary session.
Also, the Executive Secretary of the Pan African Agency of the Great Green Wall, Dr. Brahim SAID congratulated President Muhammadu Buhari for the reaffirmation of his commitment to the implementation of the Great Green Wall in Nigeria
SAID explained that the commitment testifies to its leadership at the African level but also symbolizes the solidarity, the great confidence and the recognition that all their Heads of State and Government are showing for the success of this important regional project.
According to SAID, the GGW initiative is both a challenge and an opportunity, given the multiple environmental and ecological issues that are becoming increasingly important and that demonstrate the need for a pooling of resources and joint efforts by countries without which we cannot succeed individually.
