Perm Sec Cautions Against Forests Depletion

Nigeria loses up to 1.36

per cent of its forests annually, according to Mr Ayotunde Oyeniyi, the Permanent Secretary, Kwara State Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Oyeniyi said this in a statement issued after the inauguration of the Fadama Community Forest Management Committee yesterday in Ilorin.

“Nigeria is losing as much as 1. 36 per cent of its forests annually and if the trend is allowed to continue, there will be no forest left in Nigeria by the close of the century”, the statement, quoted him as saying.

As panacea for the depletion of the forest, he said that the Kwara Government had embarked on the planting of more than 112 hectares of forest trees.

He said that the feat had endeared the state to the World Bank-Supported Critical Ecosystem Management Project under Fadama III.

He said under the scheme, 663 farmers in the state had established personal fruit tree plantations at Ajase-Ipo Watershed in Irepodun local government area of the state.

“Research has proved that one hectare of well managed forests has the potential to remove as much as 15 tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere annually”, the permanent secretary said.

He called for the protection of existing forests and the establishment of new ones through massive tree planting by government at all levels.

Meanwhile, the Wife of the Katsina State Governor, Hajiya Fatima Shema, has urged stakeholders in forest preservation and afforestation to assist the government to resuscitate the Rugu forest Reserves.

Hajiya Shema made the call in Katsina yesterday at a meeting with officials of her NGO, Service to Humanity Foundation and the participating local governments bordering the forest.

She said that the call became imperative in view of the fact that the forest was in serious need of rehabilitation.

According to her, concerted efforts have been made toward resuscitating the forest, including tree planting and fencing of the planted trees to protect them and nurture them to maturity.

She said: “stakeholders should adopt a working plan to ensure the survival of the planted trees as well as to protect the forest reserves.’’

In his remarks, Alhaji Aminu Safana, the Special Adviser to the state governor on environment, said that the government would support the NGO to achieve its aims and objectives.

He commended the efforts of founder and the organisation in complementing the activities of his department in forest preservation and environmental protection.

The meeting attracted representatives of the state Ministry of Agriculture and acting chairmen of the local governments bordering the Rugu Forest Reserves, among others.

The Rugu Forest Reserves, popularly called ‘Daji Rugu’, is one of the major forest reserves in the northern part of the country.