NCF Hosts Partners, Gives Environmental Education at 2024 Green Ball

Fadekemi Ajakaiye

As is done annually, the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF), at the weekend, hosted its valued partners and other distinguished guests at the NCF Green Ball.

According to the Director General of the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF), Dr. Joseph Onoja, “The purpose of this Green Ball, as we normally have every year, number one, is to bring our partners together and thank them for the support that they’ve been giving to us. Because, as we always say, we cannot do it alone. As NCF, we do it with all our partners coming together and thanking them and also calling for more people to join us as we work for nature and for our environment. 
“So the environment will eventually work for us, and that’s the main purpose of this. But, while at this, we also use the opportunity to continue to enlighten about environmental issues that are happening, and this year, we decided to take on the three Rio Conventions. That is, the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, and the United Nations Convention Desertification (UNCCD), and that’s how we want all of them to come together.” 

Onoja said their intention is to create a synergy and that because there is a common factor, there will be a common solution, “so that resources that can be used to take care of one can also be used to take care of all. And we don’t want the situation whereby, while you are combating one, you are exacerbating another one.” 

He said, “You don’t want to start looking for rare earth metals where you have a biodiversity area, you are trying to solve climate change problems by using renewable energies, but now you are destroying biodiversity.”

The NCF Green Ball, he said, is normally used to also raise funds for different issues, adding, “Last year we looked at mangrove restoration and mangrove restoration ties in nicely into what we call the Green Recovery Nigeria programme, which is something that we have ongoing.

So this year, we have planted over 20,000 mangroves with communities along the coastal region. Even here in Lagos, we are working with the National Theater, where we’re trying to restore the mangrove, the wetlands there, planting mangrove seedlings there, so that mangrove seedlings will be able to grow in that area alone. We planted over 5,000 mangrove seedlings so that we’ll be able to provide, number one, the wetlands will continue to do their work, because wetlands are not wastelands. Wetlands are very important. They serve as the sponge when there’s excess water, and when there is then low water, then they will release that water gradually, so that they won’t be flooding in cities.

And that’s why that place is very important. So, we work very closely with the Bankers’ community committee, who are working on renovating the National Theater to ensure that the mangrove ecosystem there is restored. And we also did mangrove restoration in different parts of the country, in Lagos, in Ibeju Lekki axis, in Bayelsa State, in River State, in Akwa Ibom State, and so on.”

He said, “NCF works very closely with the government and, in fact, we are a member of the National Council on Climate Change. Recently we’ve been announced as a member of the Cross River Council on Climate Change. So we need to continue to create more and more collaboration. As I said, we know that we cannot do it alone, so we continue to push together. So this year we are supposed to have a general fundraising for our activities. But because of logistics reasons, we couldn’t really do the normal fundraiser. So, this is just like an appreciation dinner. And in that regard, if we find, I mean, if we’re able to raise funds, we just put into our conservation work, as we continue to do, because we continue to do our conservation work.”