The Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) has launched an environmental sustainability initiative – the ‘Green Clubs’ aimed at entrenching positive environmental practices in schools.
Launched in select schools in Lagos and Abuja, the clubs will teach the students to respect and nurture the environment and will ensure that present efforts become sustainable solutions for communities, going forward.
The launch was part of events to mark the 2021 World Environment Day (WED).
“Today we also launched “Green Clubs” for our chosen schools in Lagos and Abuja. These clubs will teach the students how to respect and nurture the environment and will ensure that our efforts do not end after we leave, but truly become sustainable solutions for our communities, moving forward,” DBN Managing Director, Tony Okpanachi, stated.
Okpanachi listed some of the activities the Bank and its subsidiary, Impact Credit Guarantee Limited, will be undertaking as part of this year’s celebration to include, participation in the restoration of green space on school grounds – the planting of carpet grass, trees, and landscape designs by staff in selected schools.
According to him, the selected schools include, Government Junior Secondary School Durumi, Abuja, and Badore Community School, Lagos, while there is also a financial endowment to “Green Clubs in the respective schools.
The DBN is also partnering with MOE +Art Architecture, a local sustainability enabled design and architecture firm focused on creating sustainable practices and methodologies, to research, test, and archive local indigenous sustainable materials from four geographical locations in Nigeria.
Okpanachi explained that by partnering with a local design and architecture firm, DBN is contributing to research on reusable materials.
“It is our vision that this body of work will enable MSMEs across Nigeria to innovate and use available local materials as a source of wealth generation”, he noted.
Okpanachi reiterated the commitment of the bank to support Nigeria in tackling environmental challenges and entrench positive practices in its operations and amongst its stakeholders.
He highlighted some of the various challenges that the country’s environment is facing and assured that the bank will continue to prioritize and focus on issues of sustainability essentially, to help address some of them.
Celebrated annually on 5th of June, each year, World Environment Day is the United Nations’ principal vehicle for encouraging awareness and action for the protection of the environment.
Okpanachi noted that the Day is set aside by the United Nations to raise awareness on and take action against various environmental issues such as marine pollution, human overpopulation, global warming, sustainable consumption, and wildlife crime.
“We, as a Bank, will continue to align our operations with issues of sustainability by focusing on issues that put our environment at risk”, he pledged.
He emphasized that this year’s theme -“Ecosystem Restoration” is a call on everyone – governments, corporate organizations, and individuals – to participate in growing trees, greening cities, rewilding gardens, changing diets, or cleaning up rivers and coasts.
“We are embracing this theme by contributing to the greening of our immediate environments in Lagos and Abuja,” Okpanachi added.
World Environment Day was first held in 1974 and has since then been acknowledged as a global platform for raising awareness on environmental issues. It provides an opportunity for businesses, non-governmental organizations, communities, governments, and celebrities to advocate and pursue environmental causes.
Over 143 countries participate in this celebration annually.
