The Dangote Group, through its Employee Volunteering Initiative, has initiated a tree planting campaign toward realising global objectives of a safer ecosystem.
The General Manager/Head of Sustainability Dangote Cement, Mrs Eunice Sampson, disclosed this in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Lagos.
Sampson, who is also a volunteer, said the move was to commemorate the United Nations’ World Environment Day (WED) celebrated every June 5.
She said it was also to uphold the culture of sustainability embedded in the organisation’s operations.
Sampson said the campaign aimed at creating awareness and preserving the environment, kicked off on June 7, in some public and private schools around Ikoyi, Lekki/Ajah and Victoria Island, Lagos.
“The theme of this year, ‘Ecosystem Restoration’ is very apt and timely.
“This is because, whether we realise it or not, as individuals or institutions, we depend 100 per cent on our ecosystems for survival.
“The only way our ecosystems can continue to sustain us is if we make deliberate efforts to also sustain it.
“A degraded ecosystem cannot possibly provide us with the resources that we need to thrive; neither can it support the needs of future generations.
“At the designated school premises, Dangote volunteer employees drawn from the Head Office in Falomo, Ikoyi, in collaboration with officials of the Nigerian Conservation Foundation planted trees.
“This is to ensure a healthier environment for current and future generations,” she said.
Sampson listed schools visited by Dangote Volunteers to include Ilasan Community Secondary School, Ilasan (Lekki); Gbara Community Senior Secondary School, Gbara, Jakande (Lekki).
Sampson explained that the objective was to plant 200 trees in 10 schools, and create awareness on environmental responsibility and stewardship among the school children, while observing the COVID-19 social distancing protocols.
According to her, the tree planting campaign is expected to continue till June 10, at schools around Ajah/Badore axis.
She added that it had become imperative to restore the ecosystem because over 4.7 million hectares of forests are lost every year. (NAN)
