Minister of State for Federal Capital Territory, Chief OlaJumoke Akinjide, has attributed increasing threat to food security and healthy living for humans, to environmental degradation and has made a case for accelerated tree planting to reverse the trend
Akinjide said this yesterday, at the flag-off of the 2011 FCT tree planting campaign, in Abuja.
She said trees play a prominent role in human existence which has been succinctly summarised in the theme of this year’s launching ‘Forest, source of livelihood’ and added that the problem of environmental degradation in the country must be tackled headlong in order to avoid the calamities associated with it.
Akinjide said the objective of the tree planting campaign was to foster a harmonious relationship with environmental development as well as complement it, especially in this era of global warming and climate change.
The minister noted that the combination of various environmental problems such as deforestation, erosion and flooding among others, had created a situation that placed the nation under severe scarcity for arable land, woods for fuel in rural areas, thus weakening the rural economy.
“The overall effect of this environmental degradation is seen as a threat to food security, human healthy living which ultimately accelerates rural poverty and above all the menace of climate change.
“Today we are faced with various environmental problems such as deforestation, erosion, urbanisation, increased demand for arable land, fuel wood/charcoal production and decline in supply of non-timber forest produce on which the rural economy depends,” she said.
?According to the minister, indiscriminate felling of trees for charcoal production to the degraded the environment and endangered ingenious tree species, even as she said appropriate measures would be taken to curb the trend.
The secretary, FCT Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat, Mrs. Olvadi Madayi said the secretariat was responding to the challenge of environmental degradation, through massive re-afforestation, avenue tree planting, watershed management and sensitisation of the FCT populace among others.
She called on all residents of the FCT to be active in tree planting to combat deforestation and other forms of environmental degradation.
Fielding questions from journalist Chairman of Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Micah Jiba, while fielding questions from newsmen said the area council was aware of the critical role trees played to the well-being of human beings. He advised residents of AMAC to imbibe the culture of tree planting, especially for its gift of oxygen, which promotes healthy living.