Bennett Oghifo
Air France-KLM has partnered with the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) to promote environmental protection through a beach cleanup exercise and environmental education for schoolchildren, as the airlines mark their 107th and 93rd anniversaries.
The initiative, according to the airline’s executives, is aimed at raising awareness about the dangers of marine pollution, encouraging responsible waste disposal and instilling environmental responsibility in children through practical participation in conservation activities.
The exercise forms part of activities to commemorate the anniversaries of KLM, established 107 years ago, and Air France, which is 93 years old.
Speaking during the initiative, the Country Manager of Air France-KLM in Nigeria, Jean-Luc Mévellec, said the partnership with NCF was designed to celebrate the milestones while demonstrating the airline group’s commitment to protecting nature.
Mévellec said the airline had undertaken a similar environmental initiative at a conservatory in Lekki, Lagos, last year, adding that it sought to pursue different activities each year to sustain its contribution to environmental conservation.
“We wanted to do something to celebrate these milestones while also promoting the protection of nature. That’s why we contacted NCF to organise this initiative together,” he said.
He explained that environmental sustainability was particularly important to the aviation industry because of its growth and the need to minimise its environmental impact.
According to him, Air France-KLM invests in sustainable aviation fuel and carbon dioxide compensation as part of its efforts to balance the expansion of its operations with environmental protection.
He described the beach cleanup as a modest but meaningful contribution, stressing that the exercise was also intended to teach children that protecting nature was a shared responsibility.
“It may seem like a small contribution, but what we want to demonstrate to the children is that protecting nature is important and that everyone can play a part,” he said.
Also speaking, Antonia, a Key Account Manager for Air France-KLM, Profit and Trade, based in Abuja, said the partnership was driven by the need to protect the marine ecosystem and encourage communities to appreciate the value of their natural surroundings.
She said the initiative was intended to prevent waste and debris from harming the ocean while demonstrating the importance of keeping beaches and other public spaces clean.
According to her, involving schoolchildren in the cleanup was a deliberate effort to ensure that environmental awareness translated into responsible behaviour from an early age.
“The children here today are the leaders of tomorrow, so it is important for them to see what we are doing, take part in it, and understand why we are doing it,” she said.
She added that children needed to understand that environmental protection was not merely an activity undertaken by organisations but a civic responsibility requiring the participation of individuals and communities.
Antonia said the airline hoped the lessons from the exercise would encourage the children to become more conscious of their surroundings, avoid littering and influence others to adopt environmentally responsible practices.
She emphasised the importance of setting positive examples for young people, noting that practical involvement in conservation could help establish habits that would endure into adulthood.
On the sustainability of the initiative, she expressed hope that the programme would become an annual event, building on the airline’s existing relationship with NCF.
She also encouraged individuals to participate in environmental initiatives, even when they were not organised through corporate platforms.
“We hope this will become an annual programme. This is not our first partnership with the Nigerian Conservation Foundation, so we hope it becomes something regular,” she said.
In her remarks, Felicia Ijogwu, Customer Service Manager for Sub-Saharan Africa attached to the airline’s cargo department, described the exercise as an opportunity to demonstrate corporate social responsibility while encouraging environmental consciousness among young people.
Ijogwu said the participation of schoolchildren was central to the initiative because it allowed them to observe environmental action and understand its importance through direct experience.
She expressed excitement about participating in the programme, adding that involving children at a young age could help them develop lasting habits of cleanliness and environmental responsibility.
The partnership highlights the role of private-sector organisations and conservation groups in supporting environmental awareness and community participation.
With plastic waste and other debris posing threats to beaches and marine ecosystems, initiatives that combine practical cleanup exercises with environmental education can help encourage responsible waste disposal and strengthen public understanding of conservation.
The airline group said its continued engagement in sustainability activities reflected its recognition that protecting nature required collective action, with individuals, businesses and communities all having a role to play.