By Funmi Olasupo

The European Union, EU and the Food and Agriculture Organisation FAO have committed about 200 million Euros to boost the Great Green Wall (GGW) Project in six African countries.

File: Desert

The gesture which is coming on the heels of the just concluded COP 21 in Paris, is borne out of the the interest of international donors to assist West African countries in the continuous implementation of GGW Project in the Sahara and Sahel regions.

Speaking on the sidelines of a regional technical workshop organised by the Food and Agriculture Organisation in Abuja, the Forestry Officer, Forest Assessment, Management and Conservation Division for FAO, Ms. Nora Berrahmouni, said the regional GGW technical restoration workshop involved different GGW countries from West Africa.

The fund according to her, is a technical support that will ensure that resources are used in the best manner with the best methodologies to also reach the local communities on the ground

“This is a program of 20 million Euros that is funded by the European Union involves eight countries, six GGW countries from Africa – Nigeria, Niger, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Senegal and Ethiopia and one country in Caribbeans which is called Haiti and another one in the Pacific,”she said.

Continuing, she said, “This workshop is what we call the Regional Great Green Wall Technical Restoration Workshop. It is a workshop that was organised in support of the GGW countries in West Africa to share experiences and discuss technical issues related to restoration, and finding solutions to boost the implementation of GGW program in these countries”.

“This is part of the wider project which is called action against desertification in support of the GGW projects Sahara and Sahel initiative that is implemented by FAO in collaboration with the African Union Commission and Africa Caribbean Pacific group of countries and it is funded by European Union and a group of African Caribbean pacific states,” she explained.

The Minister of State Federal Ministry of Environment, Alhaji Ibrahim Jubril in his remarks, said one of the major objectives of the workshop is to strengthen the technical capacities of the GGW member countries towards actualising the vision of the Great Green Wall Programme.

He commended the FAO, EU and African, Caribbean, Pacific, ACP countries for the initiative considering the fact that Nigeria is now at a critical phase of combating land degradation and improving the livelihoods of the affected people in the Sahel-Saharan Region of Africa through the Great Green Wall Initiative.

On the achievement made so far in the 11 frontline states in Nigeria, the Director-General of Nigeria’s Great Green Wall programme, Mr. Goni Ahmed said desert encroachment poses a great threat to hundreds of communities across the country.

Planning to implementation

He said, “We have moved from planning to implementation and already, we have been able to identify about 200 communities that transverse all the states that are affected by desertification. However, we have sensitised a lot of people about this development.”

On what prompted the workshop, Ahmed explained that “in one of the sessions of the climate change conference that took place in Paris, international donors indicated their interest to assist Nigeria on some development programmes.

“So, it is in continuation of that that this workshop is taking place today with about six African countries in attendance. It is part of the programmes for the implementation of the GGW initiative and it is sponsored by international organisations, particularly the FAO team.”

He said the Federal Government had implemented some programmes in its bid to curb desertification through the GGW. “We have been able to establish 415 shelter belts, 135 hectares community woodlot, 235 hectares community orchard and 138 hectares community vegetable gardens, amongst other accomplishments,” Ahmed said.