The US Agency for International Development (USAID), Nigeria Mission Director, Melissa Jones, has called attention to Nigeria’s fast depleting mangrove forests due to numerous factors that are not climate-friendly. She mentioned this at the Mangroves Conference, hosted by USAID to foster critical discussions between policymakers and relevant entities. Nigeria has the biggest biodiverse mangrove forests in Africa along its 850 kilometres of coastline. However, substantial losses have been brought about by unethical logging, pollution, oil production, urbanization, and climate change. Since Nigeria’s independence, more than 60% of its mangroves have been lost; of them, 35% have vanished in the previous 20 years, and less than 5% are under protection.
Local fishing villages along the coast cut down mangrove wood for domestic purposes, especially smoking and frying seafood. It is also used for smoking and frying seafood, building materials and scaffolding. This has put the forests under tremendous strain as a result, which has led to continuous deforestation. Rising demand for the wood and the ongoing invasion and spread of the invasive Nypa palm are also degrading the forests across the nation. Unless immediate action is done, Jones noted that this trend of loss would continue.
U.S govt is dedicated to tackling biodiversity loss in Nigeria.
Mangroves are essential for local populations, biodiversity, and mitigating the effects of climate change. In some cases, the entire family is involved in all aspects of the fisheries value chain. It is also important culturally for coastal communities, as it is a major part of customs, providing plants used in Traditional Medicine and used to earn income. The USAID/Nigeria Mission Director emphasized that the US government is dedicated to tackling ecosystem and biodiversity losses as well as Climate Change in the nation. She urged for prompt collective action to protect the the Forest for posterity.
According to her, USAID and Nigeria intend in order to initiate clean energy initiatives in the upcoming months with the goal of lowering the Niger Delta’s forecasted methane Emissions and, consequently, the Pollution in its mangrove forests. Dr. Iziaq Salako, Minister of State for the Federal Ministry of Environment remarked that Nigeria is still dedicated to upholding its obligations to safeguard, restore, and ensure sustainable management of its marine ecosystem. The country is a member of relevant regional and sub-regional agreements relating to conserving nature including African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (AfCCT), Abidjan Convention, Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) among others.
Government is working on a nine-year conservation project.
He noted that the ministry is working on creating a framework for a national mangrove park, in addition to embracing ecosystem-based approaches to end biodiversity loss, and lessen the effects of climate change. The government is working on a nine-year conservation project with Wetlands International Africa (WIA) and Partners Regional Partnership for Coastal and Marine Conservation (PRCM). In Ogoniland, nearly 3,000 hectares of degraded mangroves are being restored through the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HPREP), which also offers youth and women mangrove restoration training.
Promoting restoration and community involvement have been the main focuses of recent developments in the country’s efforts to counteract the loss of forest cover. The UN-REDD Programme has played a significant role in bolstering Nigeria’s efforts to conserve mangroves, especially in Cross River. Numerous community-based REDD+ projects have been implemented in this region, which is home to more than half of Nigeria’s surviving tropical forests. Through these endeavours, more than 10,000 mangrove seedlings have been planted, and the local people have received training in sustainable techniques including pruning the invasive Nypa palm to make room for restoration.
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Under a collaboration with the UN-REDD Programme and the Global Environment Fund (GEF) Small Grants Programme, a grant of $800,000 has been used to fund various community projects in Cross River State. Nigeria also participates in the global “Mangrove Breakthrough” effort, which was introduced at COP27 and aims to ensure the survival of 15 million hectares of mangroves globally by 2030. These coordinated initiatives highlight the critical need for continuing operations and funding to conserve Nigeria’s ecosystems, which are essential for the country’s biodiversity, climate change resilience, and the livelihoods of coastal populations.