House of Representatives via a resolution on Friday, May 21, 2021, requested Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila to spearhead action that will lead to the establishment of the African Regional Parliamentary Assembly of the Sahel and the Sahara Member States on the Great Green Wall Initiative, GGWI.
To this end, the House called on the Speaker to take the lead in reaching out to Speakers of other Member States with a view to realizing the objective.
The House also urged the Minister of Environment to liaise with his counterparts in the Great Green Wall States to enlist the proposed Assembly of the Sahel and the Sahara Member States as an agenda for discussion during the next meeting of the Conference of Heads of States and Governments of the GGW.
The resolution followed a motion titled “Need for Establishment of African Regional Parliamentary Assembly of the Sahel and the Sahara Member States on the Great Green Wall”, by Hon. Johnson Egwakhide Oghuma at the plenary.
Moving the motion, Oghuma noted the African Union Declaration, 137 VIII of 2010 wherein Burkina Faso, Chad, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, and Sudan signed a Convention in Ndjamena, Chad to create the Great Green Wall, GGW, Agencies in their various States.
He said that the establishment of the Great Green Wall Agencies in member States in recent times has given rise to an integrated ecosystem management approach.
“The GGW initiative has revived interest in sustainable land management in the Sahel and North of the Sahara and has galvanized action to implement the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, UNCCD, and has leveraged a high degree of political will and leadership from member States.
“Those actions have increased awareness and several donors have also mobilized substantial investments which are offering opportunities for rapid progress, hence the need to sustain the momentum gained over the years by improving the legislative interface by member States to overcome past mistakes;
“The purpose of the Project is the greater implementation of policies for sustainable land management in the Sahel (Great Green Wall countries) through enhanced investments, inter-sectoral coordination and engagement of marginalized groups”, the lawmaker said.
Adopting the motion after securing the support of the majority of the members, the House mandated its Committee on Environment to ensure compliance with the resolution.
Source: Vanguard
