The Federal Government has relocated the Operational Headquarters of the National Agency for the Great Green Wall (NAGGW) from Abuja to Kano State in a move aimed at enhancing the Agency’s operational efficiency and strengthening the implementation of environmental restoration programmes across northern Nigeria.
Minister of Environment, Balarabe Abbas Lawal, announced the relocation, describing it as a strategic decision aligned with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and efforts to improve service delivery by positioning government agencies closer to their areas of operation.
According to the minister, the Agency will now operate from the Afforestation Programme Coordinating Unit (APCU) Office in Kano, a permanent federal facility located within the core operational zone of the Great Green Wall Programme.
The Great Green Wall Programme is an African Union-led initiative involving more than 11 member countries and is designed to combat desertification, land degradation and the impacts of climate change across the Sahel-Sahara region. In Nigeria, the programme covers 11 frontline states: Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Jigawa, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, Yobe and Zamfara.
Lawal stated that the Agency is mandated to establish a 15-kilometre-wide and 1,500-kilometre-long Green Wall belt aimed at promoting environmental sustainability, mitigating climate change, enhancing food security and reducing rural poverty.
He noted that since the programme commenced in 2013 and was upgraded to a full-fledged agency in 2015, it has recorded several milestones, including the establishment of more than 100 shelterbelts, construction of about 159 solar and wind-powered boreholes, engagement of 600 youths as forest guards, and development of 240 hectares of community orchards and woodlots to improve livelihoods.
The minister explained that relocating the headquarters from a temporary rented office in Abuja to Kano would address longstanding operational challenges and improve oversight of projects spread across the northern states.
“By moving to a permanent location in Kano, a central hub within the operational zone, the Agency will achieve better monitoring, stronger coordination with state governments, local authorities and communities, and more efficient service delivery,” he said.
Kano hosts the APCU facility, which was established in 1988 under the World Bank-supported Arid Zone Afforestation Programme. The complex has remained largely underutilised since the programme ended in 1996 and is now expected to provide a permanent base for the Agency’s operations.
Lawal added that the relocation reflects the Federal Government’s policy of situating agencies closer to their operational areas in order to improve efficiency and bring governance closer to the people.
He expressed optimism that the move would strengthen the implementation of the Great Green Wall Programme and enhance environmental resilience, economic opportunities and sustainable development for millions of people living in the affected regions.