Expert recommends development of green economy for sustainable environment
Dr Rose Gidado, Country Coordinator of Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology (OFAB), has recommended deployment and development of green economy to make Nigeria’s environment more sustainable.
Gidado, also Deputy Director, National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), made the recommendation in an interview with newsmen on Tuesday in Abuja.
She said that green economy would be a strategy to overcome ecological crisis.
According to her, due to Nigeria’s great potential of low carbon profits and rich natural assets, green economy will sustain the nation’s environment because of less dependence on fossil fuel-based technologies.
“Nigeria’s dependence on fossil fuel has been affecting the environment negatively’’, she said.
Gidado added that green economy was an alternative vision for growth and development – one that could generate growth and improve peoples’ lives in ways consistent with sustainable development.
The OFAB Nigeria Coordinator added that green economies required green energy generation based on renewable energy to replace fossil fuels as well as energy conservation and efficient energy use.
She said that the deployment would help to reduce greenhouse emissions.
The scientist said, with the world’s population projected to grow to nine billion by 2050, and with limitation in natural resources, it would become necessary to move toward renewable and sustainable energy.
She said it was necessary in order to supply healthy food and feedstock as well as daily materials.
However, she said for all these to be possible, awareness would have to be created on what green economy and its gains.
She explained that bio-economy and green economy were both multidimensional knowledge-based concepts which were interrelated, forming a link between material science, engineering, economics and the sub-aspects of life sciences enabling bio-based sustainable economic development.
Gidado clarified that depleting fossil resource which had its origin from climate threatening gas, carbon dioxide, climate change and a growing world population, would make sustainable resource-efficient strategies increasingly on the demand.
“Bio-economy and green economy are two responses to these challenges that encapsulate various sectors, such as agriculture, environment, aquaculture and industry.
“Though bio-economy has been at the centre of discussion as a vital tool for poverty alleviation, the term green economy is beginning to emerge as an all encompassing term,’’ she said.
The expert said that green economy was a broader concept than bio-economy, encapsulating renewable energy, low carbon transport, energy efficient buildings, clean technologies, improved waste management, and improved fresh water provision, among others.
“Green economy can be thought of as one which is low carbon, resource efficient and socially inclusive and bio-economy is key to green economy’’, she said.
She said bio-economy was key because bio-economy was multifaceted, dealing with food production, bio-resources, bio-fuel, health and environment, economy and related research and development.
Gidado said the world was presently debating on how to cut dangerous emissions.
She said that several scientific findings had shown that modern biotechnology had the potential to save the planet up to 2.5 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions yearly and support building a green economy.
“Bio-based development can be sustainable, long-term, sufficient supply and renewable’’, Gidado said.
