Onuigbo, Ekwunife, VC bag UNIZIK climate change awards

Onuigbo, Ekwunife, VC bag UNIZIK climate change awards. 

The Nnamdi Azikiwe University Centre for Climate Change Thursday conferred Leadership Award in Climate Change on the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Climate Change, Rep. Sam Onuigbo.

The award was conferred on Onuigbo at the first South-East Climate Change summit held at the university in Awka, Anambra.

In a speech, the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Charles Esimone, said the lawmaker was chosen for the award “for proposing a Climate Change bill that has now become an Act”.

Also honoured by the centre for their contributions to the global efforts to mitigate the impact of climate change were the Chairman, Senate Committee on Science and Technology, Sen. Uche Ekwunife, and the vice chancellor.

Onuigbo, representing Ikwuano/Umuahia North and South Federal Consituency in Abia, thanked the organisers for the gesture.

He said the award would spur him to do more work for the benefit of the nation and posterity.

He promised to collaborate with the centre toward achieving its goals and objectives on climate change.

The lawmaker, who was the guest speaker at the summit, said he was aware that the journey to getting the country’s Climate Change Act “was a long and tortuous one because he was at the heart of it.

“But what is more critical is the fact that the law we enacted is one that addresses a key issue, which poses an existential threat to mankind,” he said.

He recommended the Act to everyone “to study and become fully abreast of their responsibilities as citizens in tackling climate change”.

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Earlier, the Director of the centre, Dr Emma Ezenwaji, said the centre decided to honour the awardees for their positive contributions to climate change.

Ezenwaji said the centre was etablished in 2019 with the central mandate of building the desired capacity for local people to engage in climate change mitigation and adaptation.

In an address of welcome, the vice chancellor said that climate change and its consequences transcended local and international boundaries.

He said the university planned to introduce tree planting by students “to mitigate climate change in the institution”.

The National Daily reports that the theme of the summit was: “Limiting Climate Change through local action”.