Ecobank Nigeria says it is partnering with Lagos State Ministry of Environment on Waterfront Clean Up Programme to enhance the preservation of marine ecosystem.
It said that this partnership would effectively facilitate socio-economic activities such as transportation, power generation, irrigation and habitat to aquatic life.
A statement said the exercise, tagged ‘Cleaner Waterfront Our Pride,” was flagged off on Thursday at the Lagos State Government, Ferry Jetty at Amuwo-Odofin.
The statement indicated that the Special Adviser to the Governor of Lagos State on drainage and water resources, Joe Igbokwe, said the project was dedicated to cleaning Lagos waterfronts and educating people on ways of disposing plastic waste properly rather than dumping them into the drainage channels and how to preserve the ecosystem in general.
Igbokwe, who commended Ecobank for its continual support on environmental sustainability issues noted that each and everyone of the citizens and corporate bodies were stakeholders and must be involved in helping to preserve the environment, as it was a call to action for all.
The Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria, Patrick Akinwuntan, said the partnership to clear Lagos waterfronts was part of the Pan African bank’s corporate social responsibility policy to support environmental sustainability initiatives with a view to making the environment safer for living.
According to him, the partnership with Lagos State Government and other non- governmental organisations across the continent was in that direction.
He noted that the water bodies were priceless gifts of nature with huge aesthetic, tourism and economic values.
He lamented that these, however, had been subjected to all forms of abuse and degradation, including dumping and littering with solid wastes and all forms of debris.
The Managing Director who was represented by a General Manager in the bank, Tunde Dawodu, pointed out that there should be a cultural change on the way people disposed off their garbage.
He noted that it was in recognition of this fact, that Ecobank in May this year, launched a campaign tagged: ‘Plastic Bottle for Cash’ to pick up four million plastic bottles from Lagos drainage channels.Under the initiative, he said, Lagos residents were informed and encouraged to exchange plastic bottles for cash at designated locations across the state.Of the four million target set, over two million used plastic bottles had so far been removed from the streets as the project continued till the end of the year, it stated. Copyright PUNCH. All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may […]
