Customs Officers Wives Association (COWA) has launched its pet project, Sustainability And Green Border Initiative at the Zone C Headquarters Rivers state, raking in over N500M, even as the Customs Zone C, Zonal Coordinator, ACG Mohammed Kamal has lauded the National president for a well thought out project .
The National president of COWA, Mrs. Kikelomo Adewale Adeniyi the initiator of the project and the wife of Comptroller General of Customs Bashir Adewale Adeniyi MFR says Sustainability And Green Border Initiative would target the Border towns of Nigeria while focusing on, restoration of the degraded ecosystem and empowerment of her members.
The event which started at the Customs Area 1 Port Harcourt Command Wednesday, December 10, 2025, with a tree planting exercise later shifted to Js Signature Hotel for a dinner and fund raising.
Speaking at the event, the COWA National President, stated that the essence of the project was to take the campaign of environmental awareness and sustainability to the Border towns that have so far been neglected.
She hinted that the issue of climate change has been at the front burner prompting her team to think on how to make the environment a better place while empowering their members not only in sewing but also in research on how to cash in on the environmental sustainability to make wealth especially through waste.
She went further to posit that their members would be exposed on waste management skills including separations and recycling among others even as she informed the audience that COWA has engaged in numerous successful environmental sustainability activities especially Tree planting exercise whereby about 862 trees have been planted since October 2025 when the initiative was launched.
She also disclosed COWA’s determination to plant about 15,000 trees in the near future to mitigate environmental pollution and ensure a clear and clean ecosystem.
The COWA boss, who frowned at the level of deforestation in the Nigeria Delta region due to oil exploration and exploitation, admonished that people can plant trees including vegetables in their backyard to stem the tide of environmental pollution and greenhouse Gas emissions.
She said COWA has taken this initiative to the Seme, Idiroko,Illela borders while expressing her intention to visit others.
She charged her members, communities, officers to nurture the trees so far planted, insisting that “if you plant trees, you plant hope and anything COWA plants grows”
In his goodwill message, the Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Environment, Mr. Allwell Chinedu Okereuku who represented the Rivers state Governor, His Excellency Sir, Siminilaye Fubara expressed satisfaction with COWA’s initiative saying he was so delighted to be part of the project especially as it is related to the environmental sustainability.
The Rivers state governor expressed his readiness to partner with COWA to achieve its laudable objectives even as he buttressed the importance of clean environment to Rivers state and Nigeria at large.
Throwing more light on the programme, the chairperson COWA FOU Zone C Owerri and the wife of Comptroller B Balogun, Dr Mrs. Bolanle Balogun said that the project is very broad and could not be confined to only Tree planting.
Her words: You know that the world is battling with climate change, anything you can think of on the green side is what the project is all about. Whether re-cycling, tree planting, Environmental pollution mitigation, waste Disposal among others.”
Continuing, she said, “it was a pet project of our National president, Mrs. Kikelomo Adewale Adeniyi MFR and we have to key into it.” She started locally but now she has gone international.”
Recently she was in Brazil to address the world on COWA’s Sustainability And Green Border initiative.
And what the Customs Officers’ Wives Association is doing, is aimed at bringing positive change to our members and the society at large.”
She promised to ensure that the project is sustained at FOU Zone C, Owerri and introduced to the grassroots, so as to impact positively on their members.
Meanwhile, speaking at the Dinner, Customs Zone C, Zonal Coordinator, AGC Kamal Mohammed represented by the Customs Area controller, Port Harcourt Area 11, Command Onne, Comptroller Yusuf Alkali welcomed the guests.
Mohammed said,it was with warmth and profound gratitude that he welcomed everyone to Zone C and to the occasion which he described as more than a formal Dinner.
He emphasized that the Green Border and Sustainability Initiative was a laudable objective which, according to him, stood as “a testament that safeguards the Land that shelters us and the future of our children.”
He added that Mrs. Kikelomo Adewale Adeniyi has long been a beacon of service, compassion and resilience through initiatives like this, noting that the Association has continued to champion the empowerment of women, equipping them with opportunities and skills among others that would influence positive change within their homes, communities and beyond.
He stated that COWA “is a reflection of women working together for a greener, safer and more inclusive society.”
He therefore enjoined all the stakeholders to be committed to the fund raising to enable COWA realize its objectives.
Present at the event, include All the Customs Zone C, Area Controllers including, Comptroller B Balogun of FOU Zone C, Owerri, Customs Area 1, Controller, Comptroller Salamatu Atuluku, Customs Area 5, Ibeto Seaport and Terminals Controller, Comptroller Usman Yahaya, Comptroller AB Jaja of Eastern Marine Command, Controller Akwa Ibom/ Calabar Area command, Comptroller Dauda Giwah, Comptroller A Bodunde, Anambra/Enugu/ Ebonyi Command, and other officers and men of the Nigeria Customs Service.
Also present were members of ANLCA, NAGAFF and other Freight Forwarding Associations, Bonded Terminal Operators, WACT, Shipping Companies, Rivers state Government officials among others.
However, leading the pack of Donors was the Customs Zone C Freight Forwarders that made a donation of 500 Million.
By Bon Peters
