The Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has praised the Federal Government for commissioning Nigeria’s first treatment facility for Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) in Abuja.
CAPPA made this known in a statement on Monday.
The facility was established by the Federal Ministry of Environment, in partnership with the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
It was inaugurated on Thursday, December 18, 2025, in Abuja.
According to CAPPA, the facility is an important step in strengthening Nigeria’s system for managing chemicals and hazardous waste.
The organisation explained that PCBs are highly toxic chemicals that remain in the environment for a long time and build up in living organisms.
The pollutants can spread over long distances and cause serious harm.
It noted that PCBs have been linked to cancer, hormone disruption, weakened immunity, poor brain development, reproductive problems, and damage to land and water ecosystems.
It said the poor handling or disposal of PCBs can pollute soil, water, and food, creating serious health and environmental risks.
CAPPA noted that Nigeria is a signatory to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants and is required to stop using PCBs, properly identify PCB-containing equipment, and ensure their safe management and disposal.
“The commissioning of this treatment facility, therefore, constitutes a practical demonstration of Nigeria’s compliance with both its international treaty obligations and its domestic regulatory framework under the PCBs Control and Disposal Regulations, 2020,” CAPPA stated.
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Speaking on the development, CAPPA’s Executive Director, Akinbode Oluwafemi, said the facility “validates the spirit of the National Environmental (PCBs Control and Disposal) Regulations, 2020, and signals the Federal Government’s readiness to operationalise environmentally sound management systems for hazardous chemical wastes in Nigeria.”
He said the facility will improve Nigeria’s ability to treat and safely dispose of PCB-containing equipment and waste, while also reducing workers’ exposure, environmental pollution, and long-term health risks.
However, Oluwafemi called on the Federal Government to ensure full compliance with all existing regulations, including strict control over the production, importation, storage, transportation, use, and disposal of PCBs and related products.
He also stressed the need for strong monitoring, reporting, enforcement, and penalties to ensure effective implementation.
He urged the government to invest more in expanding and sustaining the facility, adding that sufficient funding and skilled personnel are necessary to meet national targets for eliminating PCBs and to achieve lasting environmental and economic benefits.
Alex is a business journalist cum data enthusiast with the Pinnacle Daily. He can be reached via ealex@thepinnacleng.com, @ehime_alex on X
