Jigawa requires N17bn to tackle erosion, soil degradation

Jigawa state government has disclosed that it required the whopping sum of N17 billion to enable it to tackle the persistent desertifi cation and other soil degradations in the state.

Th e Commissioner for Environment, Alhaji Barau Abduallhi Gamnbasha, made the disclosure yesterday while fi elding questions from newsmen in his offi ce, stating the gravity of the desertifi cation moving towards the state was alarming.

He said what the state government budgeted for the desertifi cation control was inadequate.

Th e commissioner said part of measures taken by the state government was that they took engineering, costing, and wrote to the Federal Ministry of Environment and Ecological Funds for intervention, pointing out that mitigating the menace of desert encroachment was beyond the power of the state government.

Gambasha said the state “needs interventions from the federal government as well the United Nations and other development partners” to actualise its dreams in that direction.

He said the Ministry was able to raise fi ve million assorted seedlings since it was one of the 11 desert frontline Northern states, adding that they had planted 20 kilometers of road worth of trees at Malam Madori, Babura, Gumel, Maigatari and Birniwa.

Gambasha further said they had supported Garki, Birniwa, Babura,Kaugama, to continue with tree planting on road sides which would serve to resolve farmers and herders’ confl icts.

Th e commissioner disclosed further that recently they had launched a tree-planting campaign at fi ve Emirates as part of eff orts to tackle desertifi cation, adding that they encouraged individuals to establish wood lots.

He said also the action against desertifi cation which was an affi liate cof NAGGW which was under the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (UN) had improved 150 hectares of land with grass seedlings under its lands degradation programme in Sule Tankarkar and Malam Madori local governments of the state.

He lamented that their major challenges were the attitude of the people who had formed the habit of felling of trees illegally which had caused lands degradation.

He warned that they “will soon apply the law prohibiting illegal felling of trees on any body found to be indulging in such negative act.

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