As Nigeria works towards achieving a green economy, stakeholders have said that a good environmental governance is key.
They argued that this is the best way of reducing environmental and ecological degradation.
The stakeholders, spoke at the 11th National Stakeholders Forum organised by the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA). Tagged, ‘Environmental Governance: A Key to Achieving Green Economy’, the stakeholders emphasised on the need for Nigeria to go green. They said it is a collective effort of government, the private sector and individuals.
The Senate Committee Chairman on Environment, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, said the National Assembly is interested in achieving green economy for Nigeria by providing the legislative super structure, noting that with the legal framework on ground, everything would follow.
Tinubu, represented by the vice chairman of the committee, Senator Foster Ogola, however stated that achieving a green economy would be difficult if the law setting up NESREA is not amended.
“NESREA will be empowered to influence and implement environmental standards that have been set up by the laws of the land,” she said.
“When we are discussing the environment and greening the economy for sustainable development, there has to be legislation on ensuring all industries in Nigeria are running on green fuel, solar energy and other alternative systems.
“We need to strengthen NESREA. We also need a law that says in the next three years, all automobiles in Nigeria must use gas and other non-fuel systems, fuel cells, solar power and the rest,” she said.
“The time to set the framework is now. If we don’t do that now we would delay doomsday, other countries have set up their green policy economies.
Also, the chairman of the forum who is also chairman, Environmental Resources Managers Limited, Prof A.M.A Imevbore, said if Nigeria continued to depend on fossil fuel and pollute the environment, it would not achieve green economy.
He noted that the country cannot achieve environmental governance by reducing annual budgetary allocation to the sector, adding that environmental governance is important to achieving a green economy.
“It must be actively pursued both in public and private sector. Government must also stop being a bad example,” he stressed.
Presenting the lead paper on environmental governance, a Law and Policy Consultant on Energy and Environment, Prof Muhammed Tawfiq Ladan, said to achieve green economy, institutions and laws must be green and participation rights and representation citizens must be allow to sue any agency when they are not satisfied.
On her part, the former DG of NESREA, Ngeri Benebo, said environmental governance compassed people’s attitude towards the environment, adding that it is the pillar to green economy.
The NESREA Director General, Dr Lawrence Anwuka, in his remarks described the action against pollution and protection of the environment as a collective responsibility.
Anwuka expressed optimism on support from the lawmakers stressing that proper legislative framework will smoothen operations of the agency.
While noting that NESREA has developed 34 regulations, he said the laws are being implemented since commencement of their operations as their responsibility is to enforce environmental laws and compliance with the provisions of international protocols.
