Environment
Expert Decries Non-Utilisation Of Ecological Fund
The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Kariala Konsult Nig. Ltd, Prof. Dagogo Fubara over the weekend expressed displeasure with the non-utilisation of the 2% ecological fund in the country and called for a reversal of the anomaly.
Prof. Fubara was speaking as chairman of the Nigerian Environmental Society (NES) 22nd Annual General Meeting/Conference in Yenagoa Bayelsa State, with the theme “Green Economy: The Impacts of Unsustainable Environmental Practices”. He described the development as “unsustainable environment practice” that was counterproductive.
Prof. Fubara who advocated for the replacement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) with the sustainable development goals (SDGs) said the objectives of the MDGs were not being met.
While calling on the NES to make proposals to governments in the Niger Delta region on checking the menace of perennial flooding and other ecological challenges, he cautioned against the belief that the next flooding would occur in 50 years time.
According to him, the flood may reoccur within a three years time frame even as he called for the building of structures and barriers of higher platforms as was the norm.
He expressed worry at the practice where those not directly affected by the flood profited through the management of the camps even as Professor of Geodesy expressed the hope that the conference was not just a talk shop and gathering of scientists and experts.
He further called on NES to strive to making politicians in power see reason as to why the environment in the Niger Delta should be protected at all times.
In his presentation, the keynote speaker, Prof. Ndowa Lale of the University of Port Harcourt said the basis of men’s existence was the environment and regretted its mismanagement by man.
He revealed that even the decisions taken by our grand parents in the agricultural sector in the past, had affected the present generation negatively as evidenced by low crop yield.
He said the protection of different specie and the eco-system should be given priority as the survival of the human race was dependent on the wellbeing of the ecosystem. On the over dependence on the forests for protein need, the professor of Animal and Environmental Biology called for the control of consumption pattern through sustainable consumption processes.
He said it was evident that people prefer snails to cow meat which has led to snails being over picked from the forests.
“Every day people are selling snails and they are not farming them.
“They gather them from our forests, you have the smaller medium and large ones.
“They don’t give a damn because the people want to survive” he said.
He advised that if consumption pattern was not regulated by checking indiscriminate hunting and gathering, the end would be disastrous to the forests and animal specie especially, man. Earlier, the National president of NES, Engr. Olu Andah-Wai Ogosu described the event as significant as it was the first after the new executive came into office
He described the theme of the conference which also had as sub-themes “Crude Consequences, The Way Forward”, “biodiversity Conservation in the Niger Delta” The challenge of Artisanal Refineries and its Effects on the environment among others as thought provoking to both the physical Environment and the economic sector.
He said NES was in a process of revitalization and recovery and for the past one year was able to reposition itself not only within its membership but also in the eyes of stakeholders in the environmental sector and the public.
He expressed happiness that NES had been involved in public hearings organized by the National Assembly, Department of Petroleum Resources and submitted a memoranda on the PIB among others.
The NES boss expressed the desire of the organization to see that the environment was seen as a living system and the activities of individuals and corporate organisations and groups were checked to ensure that the environment did not die.
He emphasised that NES was opposed to unsustainable environment practices.
He advocated for tough and implementable regulations to ensure that the generation of today leaves a green economy for the future.
President, Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Mrs Margaret Oguntala, has inaugurated the construction of 18 units residential terrace in highbrow Alausa area of Lagos toward bridging the nation’s shelter gap.
Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation has launched the 1GOV Enterprise Content Management System (ECMS) to enhance digital governance and improve service delivery.
The launch, held on Thursday in Abuja, marks the ministry’s transition from paper-based operations to a smart, integrated and technology-driven work environment.
The Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof. Joseph Utsev, said the deployment aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
Utsev said the system would improve data management, streamline workflows and strengthen transparency and accountability across the ministry.
According to him, the ECMS will enhance productivity, preserve institutional memory and reduce operational costs in the ministry.
Launching the platform, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack, said the initiative is a major step in public sector reform.
She said the ministry’s mandate affects Nigerians through water supply, sanitation, irrigation, river basin development and climate resilience programmes.
Walson-Jack said the 1GOV ECMS enables secure digital records management, automated workflows, electronic approvals and real-time collaboration across MDAs.
She added that the deployment aligns with the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 2021–2025 and the directive for full digitalisation by December 2025.
“Effective governance cannot afford delays caused by manual bottlenecks or avoidable inefficiencies,” she said.
She directed that all official correspondence in the ministry must henceforth be processed through approved digital registry channels.
In her remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Dr Emanso Umobong, said the system would eliminate workflow inefficiencies and improve service delivery.
She urged staff to fully adopt the platform and engage in continuous capacity building.
Research shows that local communities and citizens living at the grassroots, particularly women, are directly impacted by the environmental degradation, flooding and others that result from these manifestations.
In the light of this, non-governmental organisation, Ese Usamali Foundation For Rural Development (EUFORDe), has held a forum for women and other members of oil impacted communities, tagged: ‘Voices from the Grassroots,’ and aimed at building their resilience and mitigation efforts against climate change and environmental degradation
The forum, with the theme: ‘Building Resilience for Oil Spill Impacted Ahoada Communities,’ organised with support from Global Green Grants, was held in Ahoada Community, Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State, on December 5, 2025.
Executive Director of Ese Usamali Foundation For Rural Development, Mercy Elemchukwu-James, said women are at the forefront of efforts to mitigate the impact of climate change and environmental degradation.
The event, therefore, was “designed for community women impacted by oil spills, flooding and other environmental degradation,” she said.
Community women were enlightened by resource persons on new opportunities for sustainable agricultural practices and water management techniques that cushion the impact of oil spills.
Lectures were also delivered on Self-care and Trauma-care, with focus on physical and mental health of the population, and increasing access to health-related resources and services; as well as on Food security and women’s critical role in decision making in oil spill and flood situations in communities
Elemchukwu-James pointed out that the event created a forum for stakeholders, civil society actors and others to dialogue on measures at advancing inclusive and sustainable livelihoods of community women.
She stressed the need for collaborative efforts towards achieving mitigation efforts, while underscoring EUFORDe’s commitment to “fostering partnerships as a critical driver for achieving a healthy community and sustainable development.”
Elemchukwu-James described participants’ design of ‘Community Resilience Plan,’ to manage and combat environmental degradation and crises, as part of achievements recorded at the event.
The forum also witnessed the launching of EUFORDs’ Center For Resilience and Rights.
“This center is established to build resilience as Trauma-Care for victims of environmental degradation, support for survivors of Gender Based Violence (GBV) and a platform where victims of environmental injustice and other GBV cases can seek redress,” Elemchukwu-James said.
Participants celebrated the milestones achieved and charted a path toward greater impact in the coming years. They also described the event as “an inspiring and transformative experience.”
Elemchukwu-James said the awareness creation workshop “reaffirms EUFORDe’s mission to create an equitable society in which the rights and capacities of women, youth, children and underprivileged are integrated in the socio-economic planning and development of communities, for the attainment of equity and peace.