Chinweuba Okechukwu
The Customs Officers Wives Association (COWA), Federal Operations Unit Zone ‘C’ Owerri Chapter, has intensified environmental advocacy with a bold entry into the nationwide Green Border Initiative, anchoring a high-impact tree planting campaign aimed at combating climate change.
The initiative, themed “Plant 1000 Trees in 1 Hour,” signals a growing alignment between community-based organisations and national sustainability goals, with COWA taking the message directly to grassroots institutions and young Nigerians.
Flagging off the campaign at Community Secondary School, Orogwe in Owerri West Local Government Area of Imo State, the association mobilised students, teachers and community stakeholders in a coordinated awareness drive on environmental protection.
The programme, initiated by the National President of COWA, Mrs Kikelomo Adeniyi, is designed to deepen public understanding of global warming, deforestation and ecological degradation, while promoting practical solutions through mass tree planting.
Speaking during the event, Chairperson of COWA FOU Zone ‘C’, Dr Mrs Bolanle Balogun, stressed the urgency of environmental sustainability, warning that rising global temperatures driven by human activity pose long-term risks to ecosystems and livelihoods.
She explained that global warming intensifies the natural greenhouse effect, leading to increased heat retention in the atmosphere, a development she said could trigger extreme weather patterns and widespread biodiversity loss if left unchecked.
Dr Balogun urged the school management and students to become active ambassadors of the Green Border Initiative, charging them to extend the campaign beyond the school environment into surrounding communities.
In a demonstration of commitment, the event featured a hands-on tree planting exercise involving COWA members, school authorities and designated student Green Ambassadors, reinforcing the campaign’s practical focus.
Beyond advocacy, COWA also pledged to support infrastructure development in the school, including the renovation of its physics, biology and chemistry laboratories to enhance science education.
Responding, the school principal, Mrs Nwanu Clothilda Anayochi, expressed appreciation to the association for selecting the school for the programme, pledging institutional support and a sustained effort to amplify environmental awareness across the community.