Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe has expressed worry over the effect of climate change, saying the state is facing the twin challenges of desert encroachment and floods.
Buni expressed this when he received a courtesy call from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Team led by the Head of the North-East Sub-Office, Mr. Moncef Kartas, at Government House in Damaturu.
He said desert encroachment and floods are the major areas of concern to the government of Yobe state, saying the state is losing a sizeable part of its land to the disaster and also recording huge losses to yearly floods.
Daily Trust Saturday learned that some LGAs in Yobe North are battling with sand dunes that have covered farmlands and houses in some villages, rendering many people homeless while leaving many others in abject poverty as a result of sandstorms that have continually ravaged farmlands and killed livestock.
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The governor called on UNDP to partner with Yobe so as to look into these two natural disasters with a view to exploring avenues of checking these threats to safeguard the people and their means of livelihood.
He expressed his happiness for the result-oriented partnership between the UNDP, the Government of Japan, and the Yobe State State Government, in the recovery, reconstruction, and rehabilitation process of our communities, especially those affected by the unfortunate insurgency.
Earlier in his speech, the Head of the North-East Sub-Office, Mr. Moncef Kartas, reaffirmed the commitments of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in the reconstruction of schools, construction and equipping of Health facilities, and Vocational training to our youths among others in Yobe and Northeastern states.