Ahmad Hamisu Gwale
The Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) has planted 625 trees under its Plant 1 Million Trees (P1MT) campaign across Northern Nigeria.
The Independent Mirror reports that CITAD disclosed this during its first media briefing on Wednesday in Kano.
Speaking on behalf of CITAD’s Executive Director, Dr Y. Z. Ya’u, the Project Lead, Sani Khames, said the initiative is targeting one million trees across Northern Nigeria by September 2027.
Khames said the monitoring system had also helped expose inaccurate submissions, including photographs of existing mature trees and unplanted seedlings presented as newly planted trees.
He identified inadequate seedling supply as one of the major challenges facing the campaign, saying demand from communities and prospective participants currently exceeds available stock.
Khames called on government agencies, donor organisations, corporate bodies and members of the public to support the initiative with seedlings and funding to enable it to expand its planting activities.
He said the trees selected for the campaign are adapted to Northern Nigeria’s climatic conditions, with characteristics including drought tolerance, relatively low irrigation requirements and deep root systems that can help reduce erosion.
He added that promoting native species would also contribute to efforts to protect trees threatened by environmental degradation and preserve the region’s ecological heritage.
With 625 trees planted and 347 verified as surviving, CITAD is working towards its September 2027 target of planting one million trees across Northern Nigeria.
The organisation said expanding seedling production, attracting additional support and strengthening community-based monitoring would be crucial to closing the current supply gap and sustaining the campaign.
