FG ranks Gombe afforestation high as gov seeks further support

Gombe state Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya has said  his administration would  continue to work in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Environment and relevant agencies to address teething environmental challenges confronting the state. 

Governor Yahaya stated this when he visited Minister of Environment Mohammed Ahmed Mahmood in his office Tuesday in Abuja.

A statement by the governor’s  senior special assistant on media, Alhaji Ismaila Uba Misilli said the governor told his host that the vegetational composition of the state coupled with mining and poor agricultural practices had negatively impacted environmental management,  leading to desertification and gully erosion. 

He said  Gombe, the state capital “is situated in a deep valley which makes it easier for large volumes of water to flow through the city each time it rains.” 

Yahaya  said these environmental challenges confronting the state were what informed his visit  to seek for ways to improve the environment for the benefit of  people of the state. 

Governor Yahaya said in the quest to save the environment, his administration had embarked on a reforestation programme codenamed Gombe Goes Green (3G) targeting the planting of four million trees in four years. 

He said the Forest Research Institute of Nigeria had equally joined hands with the state government to ensure the target of planting the four million trees is achieved. 

Governor  Yahaya expressed the hope that through the climate change agenda and  intervention funds, the state government would  partner the federal government to holistically address the challenges confronting the Environment. 

He disclosed that his administration had since paid its counterpart fund of N500 million to facilitate the activities of NEWMAP to help in the control of the monstrous gullies in the State. 

In his remarks, Minister of Environment Mahmood applauded Governor Yahaya for his determination to reclaim the environment through the Gombe Goes Green (3G) initiative, saying the ministry would  support the noble effort. 

The minister described the afforestation programme of Gombe state as one of the most organized in the country, calling on other states to emulate the Gombe model even as he assured that its agencies would partner the state.

The governor was accompanied on the visit by Commissioner of Environment and Forestry Resources Dr. Hussaina Goje and her water resources counterpart, Alhaji Mijinyawa Yahaya, Special Adviser Abuja Liaison Usman Aliyu Garry and Director General Federal Government Bureau Nuhu Sada among others.  

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