FG constitutes committee to promote wildlife in airports

The Federal Government has inaugurated a committee on wildlife in major airports as part of the Renewed Hope Agenda for the preservation and promotion of the country’s rich natural heritage.

Minister of State for Environment, Dr Iziaq Salako, who inaugurated the body in Abuja, said the inter-ministerial committee would work towards bringing Nigeria’s iconic landscape to all major public places of interest for display.

Salako explained, “Nigeria is home to diverse and unique wildlife, hence the initiative is intended to safeguard her biodiversity and boost the famed tourism resources to the benefit of national pride and improved revenue generation for national development.”

He thanked the Federal Ministry of Aviation and Wild Africa Fund (WAF), a conservation support organisation, for the collaboration and partnership to achieve the goal, urging the committee to work tirelessly to achieve the task of promoting a beautiful Nigeria through the wildlife in the airports.

Responding, committee chairman and Conservator General of National Parks Service, Dr. Ibrahim Goni, appreciated the Minister for the vision, especially coming at a time when the country’s rich biodiversity is facing a lot of threats.

He added that the promotion of our National Parks at the country’s airports will, in no small measure, aid ecotourism development and other sectors of the economy.

In a remark, the West Africa Lead, Wild Fund Africa, Linus Unah, said Nigeria’s acclaimed wildlife and landscape deserve prominence in the airports as it is the practice in other parts of the world.

In a related development, the Conservator General of National Parks Service, Dr Ibrahim Goni, has asserted that zoos and conservatories are important to biodiversity conservation in Nigeria.

Goni, at the commissioning ceremony of the Federal University of Lokoja Zoo and Conservatory, stated that the Park Service will serve as living laboratories of natural history, hence fostering a deep understanding of the natural world.

He declared: “They will provide safe habitats for endangered species and promote their survival and potential reintroduction into the wild, adding that the two projects will create awareness about biodiversity conservation, enhance ecotourism, and facilitate research into wildlife.”

Earlier, Vice-Chancellor Prof. Olayemi Akinwumi expressed gratitude for the presence of eminent conservationists, traditional rulers, and the university community at the occasion.

He, however, appealed for support from nature enthusiasts and the government to make the zoo and conservatory in the university a centre of excellence in biodiversity conservation in the country.

Also, the Maigari of Lokoja, Ibrahim Gambo Kabir, was thankful for the establishment of the projects in the university and pledged his continuous support and that of the local communities to the project.