The Nigeria Conservation Foundation (NCF) has appointed Dr Joseph Onoja as the new Director-General of the foundation.
Chairman, National Executive Council of the NCF, Chief Ede Dafinone, announced in a statement on Saturday, August 20, 2022, in Abuja, that the appointment would take effect from Sunday.
Dafinone said that the appointment took place, following the imminent departure of the former D-G, Dr Muhtari Aminu-Kano, on Sunday.
“Onoja takes over the affairs of the foundation to continue the great work of fostering the vision of a Nigeria, where people prosper while living in harmony with nature.”
According to him, in the spirit of restructuring and scaling up more years of excellence and impact, the NCF has appointed Onoja as the director-general of the foundation.
Dafinone said that Onoja had been with the foundation since 2015 as the Director of Technical Programmes, where he supervised the implementation of projects and other activities across the country.
He said Onoja acted as the D-G of the foundation for a brief period in 2018 and had worked closely with Aminu-Kano in the last four years.
The chairman said that the experience new DG had gathered would ensure a smooth progress in implementation of plans, especially the newly developed Strategic Action Plan (SAP).
“Onoja holds a PhD in Conservation Biology from the A.P. Leventis Ornithological Research Institute of the University of Jos, Plateau.
“The new D-G has researched the extent and impact of human activities on birds and large mammals in Yankari Game Reserve Bauchi, Nigeria.
“From 2009 to 2015, he served as a Research Associate with the A.P. Leventis Ornithological Research Institute and was involved in design and implementation of conservation-based research.
“Onoja also supervised the implementation and completion of the Global Environment Facility-Small Grant Programme (GEF/SGP), to promote rural participation in environmental protection through empowerment,’’ he said.
Dafinone said that Onoja attended various scientific conferences, workshops and international meetings, adding that he had acquired several knowledge in various areas as a conservationist.
By Vivian Emoni
