By Ibukun Emiola
Experts at the International Day of Forest celebration have linked poor forest protection, biodiversity loss and abandoned reserves to rising insecurity in Nigeria.
The stakeholders, who converged in Ibadan, at the event organised by the Geo-Information Society of Nigeria (GEOSON), Oyo State Chapter, called for proactive approach to mitigate insecurity in Nigeria.
It was reported that the theme of the event was “Geomentorship for Biodiversity Restoration and Monitoring.”
Mr Adedamola Ogunsesan, the Director of Technical Programme at the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF), said that the event was aimed to promote technology-driven environmental conservation and restoration.
Ogunsesan also said that most insecurity concerns were concentrated around protected areas, including forest reserves and national parks that had suffered years of neglect.
According to him, dwindling government funding for forest protection over the years had weakened ranger presence, leaving many reserves exposed and creating conditions for illegal exploitation and organised criminal operations.
“Most of our insecurity issues are within the protected areas, forest reserves, national park services, these places are areas that should have one form of protection or the other.
“These neglected forests, weak enforcement of environmental laws and poor monitoring of protected areas had created ungoverned spaces, making many forest reserves vulnerable to criminal activities and insecurity,” Ogunsesan said.
He added that because of reduction in government funding, there has been laxity in protection of most forest reserves over the last 20, 30 years, creating ungoverned spaces.”
Ogunsesan warned that habitats of many endangered species had become unsafe.
According to him, illegal wildlife killings and trafficking had become attractive beccause of the huge amount of money realised from it capable of financing broader criminality and violent networks.
He said that conservation was no longer only about saving animals and trees, but also about protecting rural communities, preventing illegal economies and restoring security within Nigeria’s increasingly vulnerable forest landscapes.
Ogunsesan further said that many of the wildlife laws remained weak, outdated and unable to deter modern environmental crimes effectively.
He cited obsolete penalties for killing endangered species, saying that fines fixed decades ago no longer reflected present realities, thereby making environmental crimes attractive and undermining deterrence across forest communities.
In his remarks, the Oyo State Commissioner for Environment, Dr Ademola Aderinto, said that government alone could not restore biodiversity or protect forests.
Aderinto said that stronger legislation and broader stakeholder collaboration remained critical.
“You must realise this is not what government can do alone, there’s a limit to how much government can do in terms of this,”Aderinto said and urged for wider stakeholder participation.
He added that a stronger legislation would go a long way in enforcing a lot of things, noting that the state was pursuing measures to strengthen conservation and public environmental responsibility.
Also speaking, Director of Research, Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria (FRIN), Dr Osikabor Benson, said that insecurity had become the biggest obstacle to afforestation and sustainable forest management nationwide.
Benson said that forests, just as humans were insecure, explaining that trees planted in both public and private spaces were often stolen, felled or damaged by intruders.
He said that the challenges were no longer about lack of seedlings, as FRIN raises at least one million seedlings yearly, but about securing forests where those trees must survive.
“Stronger protection systems, including forest guards and sustained government intervention, are essential to preserve forest reserves and ensure afforestation programmes achieve meaningful environmental and economic impact,”Benson said.
Chairman of GEOSON, Oyo State Chapter, Mr David Afolayan, said the group’s geomentorship initiative would use geospatial technology to track planted trees and encourage long-term interest in forests.
Afolayan said the initiative would engage schools and communities in tree planting, mapping and monitoring, while helping citizens understand forests as economic and environmental assets, not abandoned spaces.
“We will continue to increase public interest in forest monitoring and restoration to reduce neglect around forested areas, strengthen community ownership and discourage criminal exploitation of underutilised environmental resources
“When communities begin to see economic value in trees and biodiversity, they are more likely to protect them and resist activities that undermine security,”he said.
The Vice Chancellor, Dominican University, Ibadan, Prof Jacinta Opara; and National President GEOSON, Dr Nihinlola Olayinka-Dosunmu; urged institutions to support biodiversity restoration through research and technology-based monitoring of indigenous tree species.
Pic: Stakeholders at the International day of Forest organised by GEOSON Oyo State Chapte
