Abuja: Worried by continuous threats to soil by desertification, land degradation and the effects of climate change, the federal government has said that it will cultivate 16 000 hectares of land annually by planting various economic trees as part of measures to curtail these menace. The federal minister of environment, housing and urban development, Mr. John Odey who disclosed this on the occasion of the 2009 World Desertification Day, held in Dutse Jigawa state yesterday, added that land degradation and diminishing water availability were real issues confronting the country today.
Mr. odey attributed such to factors such as deforestation, unplanned and poorly-executed land use system and climate change. "In a span of three decades, we have noticed the negative impacts of desertification, deforestation and climate change on our lives", he stated.
According to the minister, the world desertification day is a day set aside by the United Nations to reflect on the plight of the people whose livelihoods are seriously being threatened by desert encroachment. He maintained that the occasion also provides them an opportunity to raise awareness on the devastating impacts of drought and desertification on the livelihoods of about a billion people, particularly in the dry lands of the world.
"Collectively, we are to avail ourselves of the opportunity of the day to strategies on how to defeat the" monster" in the spirit of the United Nations convention to combat desertification(UNCCD)", John Odey posited. The minister lamented that desertification threatens human security as it deprives people of their means of livelyhood by taking away food, access to water, the means for economic activities and even their homes. "As the government seeks to accelerate our economic growth towards realizing the vision 2020 target and reduce poverty amongst our people, our actions must be decisive against land degradation and the impacts of climate change", he added.
Mr. Odey maintained that the climate change alone may alter Nigeria 's growth prospects in fundamental ways. In his keynote address, the acting governor of Jigawa state, Alhaji Ahmad Mahmud expressed regret that desertification and drought bring about suffering to 29 million poor Nigerians. Alhaji Ahmad stated further that it is real that energy requirements in urban areas is loaded with much negative impact on the ecosystem, adding that the industrial energy requirements of developing countries have meet a lot of green house uses.
The acting governor stated that Jigawa state has established 84-kilometer shelter belt from Birniwa, Gumel, and Babura up to Kazaure local government area. Earlier in his welcome address, the state commissioner for environment, Barrister Yusuf Mato disclosed that last year, the state government raised five million seedlings as a pilot scheme and reduced it to three million this year. The theme of this year's occasion is "Conserving Land and Water, Securing Our Common Future".
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