By Blessing Enagu
The government of Cross River State has reiterated her unflinching support to the National Park Service in achieving the mandate of forests conservation in the State and Nigeria.
Receiving a delegation from the National Park Service headquarters, Abuja, in his office in Calabar, the Chairman, Cross River State Forestry Commission, Chief Tony Undiandeye expressed satisfaction at the level of collaboration with the Park Service through the Cross River National Park, over the years, nothing that the Commission is always open to such partnerships for the overall goal of forests conservation.
He affirmed that forests exploitation has become a global challenge which requires a multi-sectoral collaboration in curbing it, adding that the challenge is due to the global economic situation, given the fact that forests conservation is capital intensive.
The Chairman stated further that the high rate of attrition going on in Cross River forests estate does not isolate the National Park from the entire stretch of the forests zone in the State.
According to him, the long standing moratorium policy of the State Government has technically hindered the Commission from carrying out the essentials of Sustainable Forests Management.
“The forests dependent Communities no longer receive royalties as it were and became weary of the cooperation with the government. These gaps he explained, caused the community youths to be enticed and became partners with illegal loggers, posing huge threats to the State's forests,” the Chairman pointed out.
Chief Undiandeye maintained that policing the forests has become very risky for the armless Rangers of the Commission because they are not guaranteed any weapon which would have complemented their enforcement activities, while calling on the Park Service to grant the Commission necessary backing so that his Staff who are indigenes of the State can reasonably and enforceably relate with the Communities.
“If we work together closely and have the leverage of your funding, we shall salvage our forests and its rich resources and also preserve the unique status of Cross River State in the global environmental map”, Undiandeye emphasised.
Speaking earlier, the representative of the Conservator General, National Park Service, and the leader of the delegation, Assistant Conservator General, Ahmed Abdullahi commended the State Government and the Forestry Commission in particular, for the enormous support so far and sued for a sustained collaboration.
ACG Abdullahi who led the team on a Park monitoring exercise to the Cross River National Park, decried the level of destruction within the Park corridors, noting that a lot needs to be done to forestall looming danger.
He stated that his interactions on the field revealed that so much pressure on the forests owing to the increasing population, high rate of unemployment, among other challenges highlighted by youths of the Communities he visited.
The team leader acknowledged that the Park has a responsibility to respond to some of the Communities’ demand which he described as genuine, informing that being armed with adequate information from the field, the Park will roll out new strategies that will aid effective management of the forests.
Thanking the delegation, the Cross River State Coordinator for Sustainable Fuel Wood Management Project and Assistant Director of Forestry in the Commission, Dr. Edu Effiom appreciated the team for the timely visit. She informed them that the Commission recently submitted a proposal to World Heritage Fund which seeks to conserve the heritage sites in Cross River State.
Dr. Effiom expressed hope that the Commission will get an endorsement from the National Park Service in the second phase of the proposal while also hoping that their collaboration will birth funding opportunities for the Commission to harness.
In attendance were also the Conservator of Cross River National Park, CP Zanna Lawan, CPs Ahmed Gana and Gabriel Agba from the National Park headquarters, Abuja, as well as the Permanent Secretary and Directors from the State Forestry Commission.
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