President Buhari Appoints Salihu Dahiru As Pioneer DG Of Climate Change Council

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of Salisu Dahiru as Pioneer Director General (DG) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Council on Climate Change.

Salihu Dahiru Get Appointment

The appointment which took effect on 25th July 2022, was made known in a statement signed by Saghir el Mohammed, Director Press, Federal Ministry of Environment, and made available to journalists in Abuja on Friday.

As part of his Climate Change agenda, President Buhari made a commitment for Nigeria to achieve a net zero emission by 2060, in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

The new DG, is expected to drive implementation of the Nigeria’s Climate Change Agenda and the National Climate Change Action Plan, including the development of a carbon market framework and a National Adaptation Plan, which will be inline with the aspirations of the country’s Nationally Determined Contributions NDC.

Dr. Dahiru holds B.Sc. Botany, M.Sc. Cytogenetics and Plant Breeding and PhD in Environmental Resources Management.
He has over thirty-seven years of experience in environmental management, sustainable development, and the academia, of which over fourteen years were in climate change policy, programs and projects at national and international levels.

He pioneered and led Nigeria’s Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) Programme.

He has been Nigeria’s lead negotiator for the Agriculture, Forest and Other Land Use, AFOLU, sector under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, UNFCCC.

Prior to his appointment, Dr. Dahiru was the National Project Coordinator for the Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project NEWMAP, and the Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscape ACReSAL, Project, both financed by the World Bank.

He also served as the Federal Director of Forestry for eight years. He is a Fellow of the Forestry Association of Nigeria (FAN).

Dr. Salisu is an astute administrator, resource-manager, expert in climate change, complex project planning and management, resource mobilization and linkage with donor funding.

His vast experience in working with the World Bank and other Development Partners will positively enhance his effectiveness and efficiency in the smooth implementation of the National Climate Change Agenda.

Meanwhile, the younger brother of Ebonyi State Governor, Austin Umahi has rejected Buhari’s appointment as secretary of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC).