The federal government and other stakeholders have taken a bold step towards finding sustainable solutions to the challenges plaguing the Lake Chad Basin.
They converged on Thursday in Abuja at a three-day technical committee of experts preparatory to the 68th ordinary session of the Council of Ministers of the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC).
Declaring the workshop open, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Water Resources, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack, said it was organised for stakeholders to deliberate on critical issues with a view to making timely recommendations to the council of ministers.
She said, “As you may be aware, the Lake Chad Basin is an area whose fragility has been worsened by the combined effects of climate change and unsustainable anthropogenic activities.
“During meetings like this, we have the opportunity to brainstorm on possible solutions to the many challenges plaguing the region.”
In his remarks, Ambassador Mamman Nuhu, the Executive Secretary of LCBC, said this year’s meeting was taking place against the background of complex challenges occasioned by extreme poverty, economic instability and food insecurity.
He said, “The ongoing insecurity in the region fueled by both widespread violence and climate change has also led to widespread displacement of people, most of them farmers, herders, fishermen, women, and children who can no longer fend for themselves.”
He, therefore, urged the participants to work as a family to reach a consensus and make recommendations that would address the challenges facing the region.
