Governor Agbu Kefas of Taraba state on Friday launched the state’s Climate Change Policy and Action Plan, with a call for collective action to build a more environmentally sustainable and climate-resilient state.

Speaking at the launch, the Commissioner for Environment and Climate Change, Hajiya Aishat B. Barde, called on Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), local government councils, traditional institutions, communities, youth and women groups, the private sector and development partners to embrace their respective responsibilities in implementing the policy.

Barde said climate action was not the responsibility of a single institution but a shared mandate that required collective commitment, coordination and sustained action.

She described the launch as the beginning of a new phase of coordinated and measurable climate action in the state.

According to her, the policy would help Taraba build a state that is “environmentally sustainable, economically prosperous and resilient to the challenges of changing climate.”

The commissioner applauded the Natural Eco Capital, Society for Planet and Prosperity, and the African Climate Foundation for their financial and technical support toward the development of the policy.

She also commended governor Kefas for creating an enabling environment and for making climate action a priority in the state’s development agenda.

Unveiling the action plan, governor Kefas said the policy represented a decision about the future of Taraba, particularly the preservation of its forests, rivers and other natural resources.

“We are taking the decision about the future of Taraba. We are deciding whether our forests will still be standing and whether our rivers will still be flowing,” the governor said.

Kefas noted that climate change was already affecting agriculture and communities, stressing that unpredictable rainfall and drying rivers could have serious consequences for farmers and residents.

He said the state’s climate change policy covered critical sectors including health, infrastructure and education, adding that environmental considerations must become an integral part of government planning.

The governor stressed that all ministries, traditional institutions, local governments and citizens had roles to play in implementing the policy.

He particularly warned that any climate policy that failed to support farmers would not succeed, while urging residents to protect forests and discourage bush burning.

Kefas also called for improved waste management, noting that climate action could not be effectively pursued while streets and drainage systems remained clogged with waste.

He said climate resilience must become part of the state’s development plans and directed local government areas to play a central role in implementation, given that issues such as flooding and bush burning occur mainly at the community level.

The governor said the success of the policy would no longer be measured by the number of conferences or workshops organised, but by tangible changes in communities.

He called on the Federal Government, the National Council on Climate Change, international partners and other stakeholders to work with Taraba in implementing the policy and action plan.

Kefas said every citizen could contribute to environmental protection, noting that planting and protecting a tree, as well as discouraging bush burning, were practical ways of participating in climate action.

He described Taraba as a state richly endowed with natural resources, including mountains, rivers and forests, and stressed the need to protect the resources for present and future generations.

The governor declared that the state’s Climate Change Policy had come to stay and would form part of Taraba’s development agenda.