A Conservationists at Cross River National Park, Mr Richard Efa, said the Federal Government had concluded plans to construct access road to the Oban Hills.
Efa said in an interview at Akamkpa, near Calabar, that process for the award of contract was being concluded, noting that the road to the park had for a long time remained a major challenge to the park’s authorities.
“The good news is that provision for the construction of the road to the park was made in the 2013 Federal Government budget, and the government is set to award the contract,’’ he said.
According to him, the road is nine kilometres from Oban Hills to Erokut and one kilometre to Ekang, its dilapidation has been discouraging people from visiting the park.
He said the park often attracted many researchers and tourists from within and outside the country, adding that their studies and recommendations had helped the management in the effective running of the park.
“The inputs of the researchers help management to get data on areas we have not done well and to improve on the areas we are doing well,’’ he said.
Efa decried the activities of poachers, who engage in logging and hunting, adding that the management was doing everything possible to check the menace.