Former Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has pledged to build on the legacy of the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF), promising to strengthen biodiversity conservation and position climate action as a catalyst for economic growth, job creation, and sustainable development.

Osinbajo, who was unveiled as President of the Foundation’s Board of Trustees at its 37th Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos, said the organisation was entering a new phase with better resources, improved technology and stronger youth participation, placing it in a stronger position to deepen its conservation impact across Nigeria.

He noted that the foundation is now better equipped and better informed than when it was established in 1980, expressing confidence in its capacity to advance environmental conservation.

“We are basically building on the work that has been done. Now we have better resources, better technology, and the enthusiastic support of young people committed to climate action. I think we are in a very good place to advance the great work that has been done by the Foundation,” he said.

Osinbajo, who succeeds Philip Asiodu, identified biodiversity conservation as one of the Foundation’s foremost priorities and urged Nigeria to view climate action as an economic opportunity.

“We need a better plan, especially for biodiversity. We also need to take advantage of the opportunities that climate change presents. Climate-positive growth, using renewable energy, which we have in abundance, can help us achieve our economic objectives more quickly, create more jobs and open up opportunities, especially for young people,” he said.

Addressing concerns over funding constraints, Osinbajo said the NCF would prioritise partnerships and collaboration rather than depend solely on financial support.

“Money will follow ideas. It will follow commitment and dedication. We have the ideas and the commitment. We are looking for collaborators and co-travellers who share the same vision. There is already a global coalition of people doing this kind of work, so we are not unduly worried about resources,” he said.

On balancing infrastructure development with environmental protection, particularly around conservation areas, he stressed the need for stronger collaboration among governments, civil society organisations and environmental practitioners.

“The NCF cannot work alone. This is a global coalition. The important thing is to focus on the many opportunities that climate action and environmental protection present. The opportunities created by preserving biodiversity are enormous,” he added.

Outgoing President of the Board of Trustees, Philip Asiodu, reaffirmed the foundation’s commitment to protecting Nigeria’s natural heritage despite mounting environmental threats.

Speaking on the AGM theme, “Restoring Balance for People and Nature,” Asiodu said climate change, deforestation, biodiversity loss and pollution continued to threaten the country’s ecosystems. He called for stricter enforcement of environmental laws and increased investment in conservation.

He urged governments at all levels to integrate conservation into development planning, while encouraging the private sector to adopt sustainable business practices and support conservation through responsible investments and partnerships.

Asiodu said the foundation had strengthened its work in science, policy, education and community engagement, adding that its 2026-2030 strategic plan would prioritise innovation, institutional strengthening, resource mobilisation and wider conservation impact nationwide.

Chairman of the National Executive Council, Hon. Justice R.I.B. Adebiyi, said the organisation remained committed to promoting sustainable development through effective conservation programmes despite growing threats posed by climate change and environmental degradation.

She said the foundation had strengthened its governance framework, expanded partnerships with governments, communities, development partners and the private sector, while investing more in digital technology to improve project delivery, monitoring and accountability.

According to her, the investment would enable the Foundation to monitor conservation projects nationwide in real time, track funding, assess progress and respond more quickly to emerging challenges.

“We have invested heavily in technology and that investment will continue over the next five years. At the click of a button, we should be able to know the status of every project, who is handling it, what has been achieved and what challenges remain,” she said.

Adebiyi added that the foundation was also working to expand its membership by providing greater access to environmental information, creating exclusive green spaces for members and replicating the Lekki Conservation Centre model in other parts of the country, including Abuja.

On what she described as a growing public complacency towards climate change, Adebiyi said its impacts were already evident worldwide and required collective action.

NCF Director-General, Dr Joseph Onoja, said the organisation recorded significant conservation gains in 2025 despite persistent environmental challenges.

According to him, the foundation empowered 19,900 beneficiaries, planted 265,561 trees, restored 300 hectares of degraded land and protected 58 endangered species during the year. It also expanded environmental education to 515 schools, reaching more than 15,000 students, while 119 communities participated in conservation activities across the country.

Onoja said the foundation made progress in ecosystem restoration across the Niger Delta, the East Atlantic Flyway and Northern Nigeria, while strengthening biodiversity protection, forest governance, youth development and initiatives to tackle plastic pollution.

He, however, noted that climate change, weak enforcement of environmental regulations, inadequate funding and institutional challenges continued to impede conservation efforts.

Highlighting the scale of the task ahead, Onoja said Nigeria remained home to several critically endangered species requiring urgent protection. “The forest elephant, the Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee and the Cross River gorilla are among the species that need protection.

“We also have important plant species and freshwater organisms that require conservation. What we have done is still scratching the surface. There is much more to be done through habitat restoration, expanding protected areas and safeguarding key biodiversity areas,” he said.

He added that conservation efforts were also generating livelihoods and green jobs, demonstrating that environmental protection can deliver significant social and economic benefits alongside ecological gains.