The Niger State Government has established a transition committee to oversee the transfer of the upgraded Alawa Game Reserve into a National Park.
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The State Governor, Mohammed Umaru Bago, formally inaugurated the committee at the Government House in Minna, the state capital, during a State Executive Council meeting.
The governor hailed the inauguration as a historic event, emphasizing the critical role of conservation and ecosystem preservation for the benefit of both humans and the environment.
“Niger State is the first sub-national to organise the Green Initiative Summit and also established an agency to drive the initiative,” Governor said.
Governor Umar highlighted the advantages of the significant decision to transform the Alawa Game Reserve into a National Park within the state.
“though my administration has no intention of letting go of the Alawa Game Reserve,, however, as a responsible government, my administration would have to go by the decisions of previous administrations as the government is a continuum. Process to yield economic development of the state”
The governor also expressed interest in having Kainji National Park come under the control of the state government.
“I have reiterated the commitment of my administration to take over the Kainji National Park with the view to addressing the activities of butchers, loggers, and extremists around the park, which has become worrisome.”
He urged the Nigeria National Park Service to coordinate with the State Security Committee, noting that 10,000 rangers are operating in ungoverned areas, to prevent conflicts along the blue line.
Earlier, Dr. Ibrahim Musa Goni, the Conservator-General of the Nigeria National Park Service, briefed the governor on the process of upgrading the Alawa Game Reserve to a National Park. He explained that in 2009, the National Council of Environment resolved in one of its meetings that state governments should be approached to take over certain forests in order to expand the country’s forest cover.
“By 2013, the then Governor of Niger State approved a letter in that respect from the then Conservator-General of the Nigeria National Park Service, leading to the approval of 10 proposed sites across the country in 2020 by the immediate past President Muhammadu Buhari, of which Alawa Game Reserve was one of them,” he added.
The committee, comprising representatives from the State Government, the Nigeria National Park Service, and the host community, is chaired by Shariff Labaran Musa, the Director of Forestry and Wildlife Service for Niger State, with Fatima Balarabe from the Nigeria National Park Service serving as Secretary.
Oluchi Okwuego
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