The Minister of Environment, Balarabe Abbas Lawal, announced the inauguration of the Working Group on Environmental Standards for the Sustainable Procurement Environmental and Social Standards Enhancement Project.
This initiative marks a significant stride in Nigeria’s commitment to environmental stewardship and sustainable development. Ibrahim Haruna, Head, Press and Public Relations Unit, relates this to the newsmen
Lawal emphasised the importance of the working group in addressing critical gaps and enhancing capacity in procurement, environmental management, and social standards sectors.
He underscored its alignment with President Tinubu’s vision for transparent procurement processes, emphasising transparency as fundamental to good governance.
The Sustainable Procurement, Environmental, and Social Standards Enhancement Programme aims to bolster Nigeria’s capacity in procurement, environmental management, and social standards, tackling issues like the shortage of qualified professionals in these fields.
Minister Lawal applauded the partnership with the World Bank and the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget, and National Planning for their support in this endeavour.
The Working Group aims to enhance human capacity in sustainable procurement, environmental, and social standards across both the public and private sectors. Minister Lawal expressed confidence in the group’s ability to develop robust, evidence-based standards that will make a significant impact on the global environmental landscape.
In his address, Permanent Secretary Mahmud Adam Kambari reiterated the government’s commitment to the project’s success, urging stakeholders to work towards achieving the Project Development Objective by October 2024. He acknowledged the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic but remained hopeful for the project’s extension to ensure its successful realisation.
Prof. Oladapo Afolabi CFR, Chairman of the Working Group, expressed gratitude for the opportunity and assured Minister Lawal of the committee’s dedication to its mandate.
The establishment of the Working Group on Environmental Standards signals Nigeria’s proactive approach to environmental sustainability and underscores its commitment to global standards in procurement and environmental management.
