Ogun targets climate resilience as Abiodun urges tree planting

n n

Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, has urged residents to treat tree planting as a sustained environmental responsibility rather than an annual government exercise, saying the state’s response to climate change must extend to protecting and nurturing trees after they are planted.

n

Abiodun made the call on Saturday at the 2026 Ogun Tree Planting Day, organised by the state Ministries of Environment and Forestry at the frontage of Orange Valley Estate, Olusegun Obasanjo Hilltop, Oke Mosan, Abeokuta.

n

Represented by his deputy, Noimot Salako-Oyedele, the governor said the theme of this year’s programme, “Root for the Future: Plant a Tree, Heal the Earth,” reflected the growing environmental pressures facing communities across the state.

n

“Tree planting is not merely the placing of seedlings into the soil but a reaffirmation of our collective responsibility to protect the environment, restore degraded ecosystems and secure a future where economic progress and environmental sustainability advance together,” Abiodun said.

n

He said climate change was no longer a distant environmental concern, pointing to rising temperatures, flooding, prolonged dry seasons, land degradation and biodiversity loss as challenges increasingly affecting communities, livelihoods and the economy.

n

The governor, therefore, urged residents, institutions and organisations participating in the tree-planting programme to go beyond planting seedlings to ensuring that they survive and mature.

n

He commended the Federal Government for its environmental initiatives, including the Nigeria Energy Transition Plan, National Clean Cooking Policy, afforestation and ecosystem restoration programmes, climate-safe investments and carbon market development.

n

Abiodun said Ogun would continue to align with those objectives through investments in afforestation, renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, green infrastructure, waste management, environmental sanitation and improved flood-control mechanisms.

n

He noted that the state’s annual tree-planting programme had grown beyond a government activity to involve schools, tertiary institutions, corporate organisations, development partners and individual residents.

n

The governor called on participants to sustain that involvement by planting and caring for trees across their communities.

n

The Head of Service, Olanrewaju Saka, similarly urged public servants, corporate organisations, educational institutions, community leaders and residents to incorporate tree planting into their activities and make environmental protection a shared responsibility.

n

The Commissioner for Forestry, Taiwo Oludotun, said the state government had revived its six forest reserves, which he described as having been moribund before the Abiodun administration assumed office.

n

Oludotun said the restoration had contributed to improving the state’s forest cover.

n

Earlier, the Commissioner for Environment, Ola Oresanya, said trees played multiple roles in environmental protection, including absorbing carbon dioxide, improving air quality, conserving water, reducing soil erosion and providing habitats for wildlife.

n

He also linked urban tree cover to the appearance of cities and the physical and mental well-being of residents.

n

Oresanya described every seedling planted and properly maintained as “a practical investment in climate action and sustainable development”, urging residents to protect newly planted trees from damage and monitor their growth.

n

He particularly called on students and young people, whom he described as the “Environmental Champions of Tomorrow”, to begin planting trees in schools, places of worship and communities and encourage their peers to do the same.

n

The commissioner’s emphasis on nurturing the seedlings highlights one of the central challenges of tree-planting programmes: planting alone does not restore forest cover or deliver climate benefits unless seedlings survive to maturity.

n

He consequently urged residents to take responsibility for the trees planted in their communities, saying their protection was in the overriding public interest.

n n