Osinbajo takes charge of NCF as Nigeria’s environmental challenges deepen
From flooding and deforestation to pollution, biodiversity loss and climate-related disasters, former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo inherits a conservation organisation at a critical moment in Nigeria’s environmental journey.
For years, the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) has attracted prominent Nigerians with experience at the highest levels of public life to champion the protection of the country’s natural environment.
That tradition has continued with the emergence of former Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, GCON, as the new President of the Foundation’s Board of Trustees.
Osinbajo was formally unveiled on Wednesday, July 8, 2026, at The Rotunda, Lekki Conservation Centre, Lagos, during the Foundation’s 37th Annual General Meeting.
He succeeds elder statesman and former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Chief Philip Asiodu, who stepped down after more than 25 years of leading the organisation.
His arrival comes at a time when Nigeria’s environmental problems are no longer distant warnings but everyday realities for millions of Nigerians.
Across the country, flooding is destroying homes, roads, farms and businesses; coastal communities are increasingly exposed to erosion and sea-level rise; northern communities are battling desertification, drought and extreme heat, while deforestation, biodiversity loss, pollution and poor waste management continue to put pressure on the country’s ecosystems.
Nigeria’s Department of Climate Change says the country is experiencing rising temperatures, increasingly erratic rainfall, severe drought, desertification in parts of the North, flooding and coastal erosion. It also warns that climate change is undermining development and threatening agriculture, water resources, infrastructure and livelihoods.
The challenge is particularly visible in urban centres, where blocked drainage systems, uncontrolled development and poor waste disposal can turn heavy rainfall into devastating flash floods.
In 2025, the Federal Government identified more than 1,200 communities in 176 Local Government Areas across 33 states and the Federal Capital Territory as being in high flood-risk areas.
For Osinbajo, therefore, the new responsibility goes beyond protecting forests and wildlife. It places him at the centre of a national conversation about how Nigeria can develop economically without destroying the natural systems on which its people depend.
Accepting the responsibility, the former Vice President acknowledged the seriousness of the environmental crisis, particularly the increasing incidence of flooding and extreme weather events in Nigeria and around the world.
He pledged to mobilise stronger support from the public and private sectors for environmental conservation while promoting urgent action on climate change and environmental degradation.
Osinbajo also expressed confidence in the Foundation’s ability to deliver greater impact, noting that the organisation is now better equipped and better informed than when its pioneers established it.
With a touch of humour, he observed that previous occupants of the NCF presidency appeared to have enjoyed remarkable longevity.
He pointed to the Foundation’s founding president, Chief S.L. Edu, who lived to the age of 91, and Chief Asiodu, who remains active at 92.
“If precedent is anything to go by, there appears to be a package of longevity attached to this position,” he joked, drawing laughter from the audience.
But beneath the humour lies a serious task.
Osinbajo will have to help the Foundation translate environmental advocacy into practical action capable of improving the lives of communities facing flooding, land degradation, pollution, loss of forests and declining biodiversity.
He is also expected to strengthen NCF’s engagement with governments, development partners, businesses, researchers and local communities, particularly as Nigeria seeks to balance economic growth with climate resilience and environmental sustainability.
The challenge is considerable.
Nigeria’s forests are under intense pressure from agricultural expansion, fuelwood extraction, unsustainable land use and infrastructure development.
The Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates the country’s annual deforestation rate at about 3.7 percent, with forest loss contributing to soil degradation, biodiversity loss and declining ecosystem services.
At the same time, pollution remains a major concern, from plastic and solid waste in urban areas to industrial pollution and oil-related environmental degradation in the Niger Delta.
The country is also facing what government and environmental stakeholders describe as a “triple planetary crisis” of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.
These pressures are being felt directly by communities whose livelihoods depend on farming, fishing, forests and other natural resources.
The new NCF leadership will therefore have to confront not only environmental degradation but also the question of how conservation can deliver economic opportunities for ordinary Nigerians.
Chairman of the NCF National Executive Council, Justice (Mrs.) R.I.B. Adebiyi, described Osinbajo as an accomplished leader whose experience in governance, climate policy and sustainable development would strengthen the organisation.
She said his previous role in leading Nigeria’s Energy Transition Plan, alongside his experience in public policy and climate action, positioned him to guide the Foundation into its next phase.
Adebiyi also paid tribute to Asiodu, describing his more than two decades of leadership as a period marked by wisdom, foresight and commitment to conservation.
Asiodu, who said he was stepping aside because of old age, urged governments at all levels to make environmental conservation an integral part of development planning and increase investment in protecting Nigeria’s natural resources.
“The environmental challenges facing Nigeria and the world remain profound,” he said, pointing to climate change, environmental degradation and pollution.
Meanwhile, NCF Director-General, Dr. Joseph Onoja, used the AGM to highlight the Foundation’s conservation achievements in 2025.
According to him, NCF empowered about 19,900 beneficiaries, planted 265,561 indigenous trees, restored 300 hectares of degraded landscapes and engaged 119 communities in conservation programmes.
The Foundation also reached 515 schools and directly engaged more than 15,000 students through environmental education programmes.
Onoja said the achievements represented more than statistics, stressing that they reflected restored ecosystems, strengthened livelihoods and communities increasingly taking ownership of conservation.
The Foundation has also unveiled a 2026–2030 strategic direction built around four priorities: climate change, biodiversity conservation, pollution management and institutional strengthening.
These priorities are likely to shape Osinbajo’s tenure as he seeks to build on the legacy of Asiodu and the Foundation’s founding generation.
The former First Lady of Cross River State, Mrs. Onari Duke; environmentalist, Mr. Desmond Majekodunmi; and corporate leader, Mr. Femi Agbaje were among members of the NCF National Executive Council present at the meeting, while Dame Marie Fatayi-Williams participated virtually.
For an organisation founded on the belief that Nigeria’s natural heritage must be protected for future generations, Osinbajo’s emergence comes at a defining moment.
The forests are shrinking, the climate is changing, cities are flooding and communities are increasingly feeling the economic cost of environmental degradation.
The task before the new NCF President is therefore clear: to help turn conservation from a conversation largely confined to environmental circles into a national development priority that touches the lives, livelihoods and future of ordinary Nigerians.
