GGW advocacy to Sokoto State

Gov. Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto has commended the National Agency for the Great Green Wall saying the Great Green Wall programme would address the level of poverty in the state and bring sucour to residents of the 11 frontline states. Tambuwal who gave the commendation when he received Mr Goni Ahmed, Director General, NAGGW and […]

Gov. Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto has commended the National Agency for the Great Green Wall saying the Great Green Wall programme would address the level of poverty in the state and bring sucour to residents of the 11 frontline states.
Tambuwal who gave the commendation when he received Mr Goni Ahmed, Director General, NAGGW and his entourage in his office recently said he was impressed by the scope of work so far embarked upon in the state component of the GGW projects.
He said the project has a direct benefit for the people of the state adding that Sokoto state has no choice but to support and embrace the programme. He expressed surprise that some states were advocating the scraping of the Ministry of Environment but assured that his state would continue to have a ministry of environment.
He said even before the creation of the NAGGW, Sokoto state saw the reason to re-enact a bill to ensure the control of desertification.
He appreciated the selection of Sokoto state as one of the states to benefit from the programme. He promised to address the issue of land allocation both in the state and the local government areas for the project.
Earlier, Mr Goni Ahmed said over 70 million Nigerians have experienced the negative impact of drought and desertification indirectly or directly.
He said Sokoto state was one of the states chosen as one of the focal points for the GGW project saying that Sokoto was under intense pressure from the menace of desertification that would result in environmental degradation and increased poverty if not tackled.
He thanked the governor for the support to the Agency by ensuring that the bill for the creation of the Agency was passed when he was the speaker of the House of Representatives.
He solicited for support from the state government in the provision of land for the GGW programme and the establishment of state and local government committee in line with the GGW Act.
The team who also visited a project site at Unguwar Lalle in Sabon Gari LGA of the state were impressed by the progress made so far. In Unguwar Lalle community, 6km of shelterbelt, 2 hectares of Orchards and 1 hectare of community nursery has been established and doing very well.
The Head of Afforestation in the Agency, Mr Segun Babatunde Akinola said that the Agency was receiving maximum support of the communities as they have come to understand the importance of the project and its benefits.
He said the communities choose mostly the species of economic trees which they will benefit from the profit.
Alhaji Sule Maigari the Mai-anguwa (Community leader) praised the efforts of the federal government for the provision of boreholes and trees planted. He said both community and their livestock’s are benefiting immensely from it. He regretted an incidence where some hoodlums came and made away with the submersible engine used for pumping water to the tank. He said that because of the incidence, both men and the youth now take turns in guarding and protecting the borehole sites.
He advised other communities along the GGW corridor to guard jealously this very laudable project and equipments the government has put in place for their benefit.
The Great Green wall Programme is surely one of the most promising panaceas to the problems of land degradation and desertification in Nigeria and quite achievable. It is a mechanism that can propel the sustainable development of the affected rural communities in the drylands.
The success of the programme lies on building an effective and coalesced actions at local level, taking a holistic approach to supporting people’s livelihoods, building adaptation measures and reduce their vulnerability to environmental shocks, particularly climate change.
Consequently, the participatory approach by involving local communities is being strengthened in all the interventions, as well as improve communication with other partners at all levels until a sustainable environment is achieved for the present and future generations.