The year 2022 World Environment Day celebrations kicked off in Lagos on Thursday with the planting of 10 historic breadfruit trees to ensure the sustenance of the environment.
Speaking at the ceremony, which took place at the St Paul’s Anglican Primary School, Breadfruit, Lagos, the Permanent Secretary, Office of Environmental Services, Mr. OmobolajiGaji said the task of regenerating the environment should not be left to the government alone.
Highlighting the Y2022 World Environment Day theme: “Only One Earth”, he said it is in line with the campaign to ensure that the beautiful planet remains a comfortable home for humanity.
He explained that this year’s celebration was a milestone for the global environmental community as it marks 50 years since the 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, widely seen as the first international meeting on the environment.
Gaji stated that World Environment Day (WED) is celebrated in different ways all over the world and these include the planting of trees, cleaning up local beaches, organising meetings and joining online protests, amongst others.
He said part of the activities lined up for this year’s celebration by the Ministry involve the planting of historical breadfruit trees, embarking on an Environmental Awareness Walk and the submission of a petition for support of the Environment to the Lagos House of Assembly as the climax of the Y2022 celebrations on Sunday.
The Permanent Secretary said individuals and civil society are pivotal advocates, adding that the more people raise their voices and emphasise what needs to be done, the faster change will come, adding that the World Environment Day programme is globally embraced to draw people’s attention to the significance of living sustainably with nature.
Earlier in a goodwill message, the representative of the Education Secretary, Lagos Island Education District, Mr. Rasheed Fashanu, commended the State Government for replanting the historical tree in the school as the area in times past was named after the tree because of the large concentration of Breadfruit trees in the area.
Fashanu stated that the District has always encouraged students to also plant trees in the area, pointing out that some of the trees planted by the students are mostly seen around the area now.
The Director, Sanitation Services Department of the Ministry, Dr. Hassan Sanuth, explained that trees planted by Lagosians were indigenous trees and synonymous with certain areas, declaring that in previous years other trees like Mango were planted in the Mangoro area of the State as well as the Coconut Tree planted at the Idi-Agbon Area in Ifako Ijaiye.