Erosion Management Programme assures 6 communities of intervention in Cross River State

The Cross River State Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Programme, CRS – NEWMAP, has assured six communities of its intervention at the various gully erosion sites.

The Senior Special Assistant to Governor Ben Ayade on NEWMAP, Francis Agaba gave the assurance while reacting to the concerns raised by members of the six communities in Cross River State, south-south Nigeria.

Agaba, who sympathized with the people over the losses incurred through the years said;“We are committed to ensure that the gully erosion sites in these communities receive the needed interventions.”

On the complaint of the community that the World Bank was leaving Cross River due to lack of counterpart funding, Agaba said, “I do not know where they got such information, but I need to assure us that the World Bank is not pulling out. They have not said or written about such to us.”

More Interventions

In an interview with Voice of Nigeria, the Commissioner, Ministry of International Development Corporation, MIDC, Dr. Inyang Asibong said that the World Bank was still working on some identified project sites across the state.

Although Asibong did not mention the names of the communities, she explained that NEWMAP and the World Bank were collaborating to ensure civil works and bioremediation commences at the sites already identified.

“The next step for Cross River State after being certified by the World Bank is that we are still going to do more. Because of the nature and topography of our climes in Cross River State, there are a lot of gully erosion problems. The communities that have gully erosion problems have written to us and our work is to go there certify and ensure that what they claim is the way it is,” she noted.

She stated further, “We have done follow ups to get approval from the World Bank on some of the outstanding erosion sites across the state. Remember, Cross River State Government have to keep that required counterpart funds before we can do any work. So, there is still work to be done in Cross River State.”

Meanwhile, members of Akai Efa, Ikot Enobong, Enima Omin, Goodluck Jonathan Bypass and Ekeya in Calabar Metropolis as well as Agiga community, Ogoja local government area, Led by the village head and traditional ruler of Akai Efa community, Henrietta Efa Akpera expressed concerns that “The World Bank has directed NEWMAP to stop the planned civil works in our communities and return the money so that the fund could be redeployed to other states in Nigeria. We do not know why the World Bank would take such a decision at this time without consideration to our very peculiar plight,.

 “It was in 2017, that a team of engineers from the World Bank visited our communities to assess the extent of environmental degradation. We were all happy about the move and after that held series of interface with them,” the traditional ruler said.

She further hinted that more than 200 buildings including farmlands worth millions were submerged in the gullies across the six communities, causing untold hardship to citizens and appealed to the President of the World Bank to come to their aid.

Other members of the community including the youth leader of Akai Efa, Alex Effiom said that through communal efforts, a few roads and houses were saved from devastation.

He said,“Through communal efforts, we have done a lot of temporary remedial works at great cost to us and without any government support. We do these to protect us because we have also lost people, especially children to these gullies. We are pleading with the Nigerian Government to help us.”

PIAK