ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS AND REGULATION: NOA, NESREA TO PROMOTE SENSITIZATION.

Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu 

"The poor awareness about the ban on the use of plastics in the country exemplifies the general lack of environmental education which require urgent action to solve.“ Issa-Onilu, DG NOA 

The National Orientation Agency (NOA) and the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) have concluded arrangements that will see them work together to promote regulations that will help to preserve the environment.

This was the outcome of a meeting between the Chief Executives of the two agencies held at the NOA Headquarters in Abuja where Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, Director General of the NOA disclosed that the Agency will leverage its national footprint and expertise to ensure massive awareness of environmental regulations and standards.

The meeting also focused on the inherent dangers of persistent abuse of the environment and the general lack of awareness about regulations. 

The DG NOA lamented that, "the poor awareness about the ban on the use of plastics in the country exemplifies the general lack of environmental education which require urgent action to solve.“ 

"How many of our people know about the policy on the use of plastics in Nigeria.? He queried. 

"This shows that we need massive education on the environment and your regulations. All our advocacy on environmental issues, climate change require that we create awareness, environmental education so that those who do not keep to our regulation can be said to be deviants. The level of ignorance about preserving the environment is massive,” Issa-Onilu stated 

He outlined the Agency’s platforms which can be deployed in the campaign to raise awareness, impart environmental education and seek attitudinal change towards solving the problem of abuse of the environment in Nigeria. 

"These platforms include the online and offline tools many of which were developed in the last ten months and are being deployed to cater for the fast changing media consumption patterns in the country." He said.

The Director General of NESREA, Dr. Innocent Barikor who was accompanied by some of his top management officers said they were seeking collaboration with NOA to accomplish the following:

** To ensure that NOA structure becomes available for creating awareness and environment education for all citizens

** To share with the NOA our concern for the endangered specie, especially the flora and fauna which are rare animals and plants in Nigeria which require protection

** Promote Environment Education

** Enlighten the public on the subsisting ban of plastics use in Nigeria

** Data Collection and research to promote environmental consciousness that can help deal with the problem of carbonisation and climate change.

At the end of the meeting of the two top shots of both agencies, it resolved to set up a joint committee to work out the implementation strategy for the partnership.

 This was contained in a statement issued and signed by Paul Odenyi, Deputy Director, Press of the NOA and made available to journalists.