By Abbas Nazil
The Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) has planted 616 trees across Northern Nigeria as part of its campaign to combat climate change, desertification and environmental degradation in the region.
The organisation disclosed this on Wednesday during its first media briefing on the progress of its one-million-tree campaign, which was launched on September 2, 2026.
CITAD said 345 of the 616 trees planted so far had been verified as planted and surviving, while the remaining trees were still awaiting verification.
The organisation said the campaign was designed to restore degraded green areas, protect indigenous tree species and mobilise communities to take practical action against the effects of climate change.
To improve transparency and monitoring, CITAD has also launched the p1mt.ng platform, which allows the progress of individual trees to be tracked.
According to the organisation, the platform uses GPS technology to document the locations of planted trees and support monitoring, reporting and verification of their survival.
CITAD said the campaign had received growing support from government agencies and communities in Kano, Jigawa and Bauchi states.
The organisation has also established four seedling nurseries in Kano, Dutse in Jigawa State and Jama’are in Bauchi State to increase the availability of indigenous tree seedlings for the campaign.
However, CITAD identified inadequate availability of seedlings as one of the major challenges facing the initiative, saying requests from communities and individuals had exceeded the number of seedlings currently available.
The organisation therefore called on governments, development partners, philanthropists and private seedling producers to support the campaign with additional seedlings and funding.
It also urged governments across Northern Nigeria to support the protection and maintenance of newly planted trees by providing materials required to safeguard young trees from damage and improve their survival.
CITAD said citizens also had an important role to play in addressing climate change by planting and protecting trees within their communities.
The organisation said the campaign would continue to expand its partnerships and grassroots mobilisation efforts as it works towards its target of planting one million trees across Northern Nigeria.
CITAD said the initiative was intended not only to increase tree cover but also to encourage communities to participate directly in restoring degraded environments and protecting indigenous vegetation.
The organisation said continued collaboration among communities, government institutions, development partners and private stakeholders would be necessary to sustain the campaign and improve the survival of planted trees.
