DD-Hub launches ICT-driven tree-planting campaign in BUK

The E-Green Nigeria project aims to facilitate the planting of a total of 10,000 trees across Nigeria, per annum, as well as deploy remote sensing, mobile app and data visualization technologies to ensure the maintenance of the planted trees

Digital Development Hub, DD-Hub, a social enterprise, in collaboration with the Bayero University, has launched an ICT-driven tree-planting campaign on the varsity’s campus in Kano. The tree-planting campaign which was launched recently was led by the varsity’s vice chancellor, Yahuza Bello.

The ICT-driven  tree-planting campaign is part of the E-Green Nigeria project,  an initiative of DD-Hub aimed at mobilizing communities, private sector institutions, government agencies as well as the civil society to embark on innovative and sustainable tree-planting towards reducing the effects of carbon emission and combating desertification in Nigeria.

“E-Green Nigeria is an ambitious ICT-driven tree-planting campaign aimed at facilitating the planting of 10,000 trees per annum across Nigeria as well as the deployment of remote sensing, mobile app and data visualization technologies to ensure the maintenance of the planted trees,” said Abdulganiyu Rufai Yakub, coordinator of E-Green Nigeria cum chief executive of DD-Hub.

“We will deploy technologies that will ensure monitoring of trees planted and keep track of the development of the trees using the Green Tracker software invented by DD-Hub. Individuals who planted the trees will continuously receive updates on the status of their tree to encourage members of the university community who planted the trees to continue to take care of trees they have planted. The BUK tree-planting campaign is tagged #1student1tree and aims to facilitate the planting of a total of 3000 trees within the campus.”

The #1student1tree tree-planting campaign which was launched at the premises of BUK’s new campus took off with the planting of over 300 seedlings around the varsity’s new campus by its students, led by the varsity’s vice chancellor, Yahuza Bello, and its management staff.

The planted trees which survived for one year will be mapped and named after the individuals who planted them and notification SMS will be sent to them, whenever the survival of the trees is threatened.

“Globally, the issue of environment is very important, more especially for this part of the country where we are under the threat of desertification. The university has taken a number of steps including the establishment of a center for dry land agriculture, which provide the know-how to the farmers on how to farm in environmentally sustainable ways,” says Yahuza Bello, BUK’s vice chancellor, while speaking to pressmen shortly after the launch of the programme.

“Trees are so essential to our environment,” says Adamu Tanko, dean of BUK’s faculty of earth and environmental sciences. “They are the composite of our living system – they take what we breathe out (carbon dioxide) breath out what we take (Oxygen). For this, we need to plant more trees. Moreover, the attention of the global community is on tackling the challenge of carbon, which the trees can absorb.”