By Adedapo Adesanya
The Lagos State Government has launched an initiative aimed at prompting a new pattern of production and consumption involving producing, repairing, and recycling used materials.
With the launch of Circular Economy Hotspot in Lagos on Wednesday, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said the state is pioneering the transformation of the current production order towards regeneration and sustainability.
The circular economy is based on the regeneration of products for continuing production in a sustainable and environmentally-friendly manner.
Mr Sanwo-Olu said the idea was critical to the future of Nigeria, noting that a circular economy would proffer a programmatic approach to addressing global economic crises occasioned by pollution, climate change, and loss of biodiversity.
Lagos, the Governor said, made a move in championing the initiative to create new wealth for the youths in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) while also generating more jobs, as additional innovative production ideas and extra manpower would be required to keep the regenerated materials in the loop for a long time.
The Governor said: “The Circular Economy Hotspot 2023 is of utmost importance for Lagos and Nigeria and the entire sub-Saharan Africa. This speaks to my administration’s core principle of encouraging citizens’ engagement and partnerships in our bid to sustain a resilient socio-economic development for Lagos.
“Developing countries like ours, which have contributed the least to global warming, are facing the worst impacts of climate change. We are also at a disadvantage in accessing resources and strategies needed to fight climate change and adapt to its impact.
“To save the future generations of resource scarcity, efforts must be committed to ensuring that resources are reused again in order to minimise waste. Our linear approach to delivering public goods and services is being re-evaluated, and the principles of Circular Economy shall be adopted fully.
“In a city like Lagos, we believe that this initiative will create more jobs because additional innovative production ideas will be needed and extra manpower required to keep materials in the loop for a long time.”
Mr Sanwo-Olu disclosed that the state’s journey to a circular economy began three years ago when Lagos brought stakeholders together on a roundtable to discuss options towards a resourceful and waste-free economy.
He said a technical working group on “Circular Lagos” was set up in 2021 to coordinate and facilitate the development of the initiative while supporting and monitoring project implementation.
The Governor said the state followed up the effort with the establishment of an interactive, web-based citizens’ engagement dashboard designed to measure implementation.
Mr Sanwo-Olu reiterated his administration’s commitment to promoting inclusive and sustainable economic growth through the encouragement of sustainable consumption and production patterns.
“This event is coming at no better time, especially as the nation continues the process of freeing up its limited resources and optimally channelling them towards addressing the different socio-economic needs of the citizens. The commercial activities that abound in Lagos, along with its major link to international businesses, have made the State a beacon of prosperity, attracting a constant influx of people, which translates to a growth in population.
“The attendant pressure on our limited resources, therefore, requires a deliberate shift from materialisation to de-materialisation. We believe that by these indices and more, Lagos will be adjudged for compliance with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 8, 9, and 12 on the promotion of inclusive growth and building resilient infrastructure.”
Modupe Gbadeyanka