FG Inaugurates Inter – Ministerial Technical Committee On Lake Chad Basin

The Federal Government has inaugurated Inter- Ministerial Technical Committee to resuscitate the drying Lake Chad Basin and its ecosystems

The Honourable Minister of Water Resources, Engr. Sulieman H. Adamu, FNSE said that President Muhamadu Buhari, GCFR is very passionate about the resuscitation of Lake Chad Basin and its ecosystems. The Minister disclosed Tuesday 11^th April, 2017 when he inaugurated the Inter- Ministerial Technical Committee on Lake Chad Basin Climate Change Resilience Action Plan (LCB-CCRAP) in Abuja.

He said that the President has appealed to the 21^st Session of the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21) held in Paris for concerted approach and international support for the rehabilitation of the Lake Chad Basin.

He stated that the objectives of the Lake Chad Basin Climate Change Resilience Action Plan          (LCB-CCRAP) include amongst the following:

to facilitate the rehabilitation of Lake Chad with a vision to restoring livelihood in the basin,

 to collaborate with the Federal Ministry of Environment and other stakeholders to provide recreational parks and other amenities around the basin to reduce and bring to the minimum the incidence of open defecation, and lastly,

to develop investment strategies for water security and climate change adaptation.

In her welcome address, the Permanent Secretary Federal Ministry of Water Resource, Mrs. Rabi S. Jimeta, mni represented by the Director  of River Basin Development and Inspectorate, Dr. Musa Ibrahim said that  the drying up of the Lake Chad Basin in the past years has affected over 20 million people who reside in the region. “We all know that the means of livelihood of the people in the basin comprises of fishing, farming and livestock production. The most adversely affected livelihood of the people is fishing due to the shrinking of the Lake and the lower/reduced flows from its feeder rivers”.

 She said that Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) has developed the Lake Chad Development and Climate Resilience Action Plan on interventions that will strengthen Climate resilience to address the challenges of socio- ecological system of Lake Chad Basin.

Chris Ugwuegbulam