The Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum has said that the state would plant five million trees in 2023 as part of efforts to rising deforestation.
Zulum made the announcement while presenting the 2023 Budget to members of the State Assembly in Maiduguri on the 7th of December, where he bemoaned the delay recorded on this year’s tree planting campaign.
He however said that preparations were in top gear for the 2023 exercise.
“The Ministry of Environment was created by the State Government to proffer solutions to environmental problems ranging from deforestation, desertification, soil and land degradation, floods and soil erosion as well as solid waste management,” Zulum told the lawmakers, adding that the ministry also distributed “wonder box” (coolers) to women for use in cooking as part of an effort to discourage the use of firewood.
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Speaking further, he said that the state government collaborated with the World Bank under the NEWMAP project which was undertaken as part of measures aimed at the control of flooding and erosion in Gwoza and the desilting and evacuation of drainages in Maiduguri and environs in 2022.
He noted that the State Environmental Protection Agency (BOSEPA) also conducted fumigation to curtail the outbreak of diseases such as malaria, cholera etc across the State as well as approved a new site for safe disposal of solid waste in the state capital.
Story was adapted from environnewsnigeria.
