FRIN strategic towards achievement of Nigeria’s afforestation targets —Minister

The Minister of Environment, Suleiman Hassan has identified the Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria (FRIN) as being strategic towards the achievement of Nigeria’s afforestation targets. He added that the institute has demonstrated its capacity to deliver on the country’s commitment to the Paris agreement on climate change.

The minister said this during his two-day visit to the institute in Ibadan over the weekend.

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The minister met with management staff of FRIN and went round the various units and departments of the institute to note the achievements and challenges each of them face. The newly appointed minister said he was taking a new approach to administration by meeting one-on-one with the agencies/departments under his ministry to know how best they could achieve their mandates.

He said the mandate of FRIN is broad and involves undertaking research, training and extension on all aspects of forestry.

“It is strategically placed to support and enable our achievement of our National Afforestation targets through the production and improvement of indigenous species, establishment of exotic species, timber utilisation, forest products and development, bio-medicinal research, modelling forest growth, conservation of natural resources and environmental forestry and protection.”

The minister noted that FRIN “has become a model of innovation in its core mandate area and has demonstrated its capacity to deliver on our commitment to the Paris agreement on climate change.”

He added that “I am pleased to note that as the lead agency on the afforestation programme funded via the green bonds, there has been an achievement of an increase in our forest cover by 5 per cent.”

Hassan urged the management and staff of the institute “that we strive to achieve more and I am committed to supporting the institute to serve as vehicle to other agencies and departments in achieving our afforestation targets.”

In his remarks, the Director-General of FRIN, Dr Adeshola Adepoju, thanked the minister for his passion and interest in the institute’s activities. Dr Adepoju said FRIN is one of five agencies in the minstry  with a shared mandate on afforestation and land degradation control. He said FRIN is the scientific backbone out of the five that would provide the needed technical information.

“There is no how we can work in silos, or independent of the other four. That is why the honourable minister is here to see how we can work together to fast track the expectation of Nigerians.”