Malam Ummaru Namadi, the Governor of Jigawa State, North East Nigeria, has lamented the devastating effect of the flood, which has affected over 40,000 households in the state since the beginning of the year. It was explained that the flood incidents have affected the individuals directly.
The governor further noted that twenty-three out of twenty-seven local government areas of Jigawa state were badly affected by floods, which has been worrisome.
The governor made the claims when the House of Representatives committee on ecological funds paid an oversight visit and inspection to the affected victims of floods in the state. The committee blamed the flood incidents on climate change, which has been aggravated by deforestation and land degradation.
The media aid to the chairman of the committee on ecological funds at the House of Representatives, Dr Aminu Jaji, Jamilu Magaji, explained that the committee, as part of the oversight function, had visited the state to have a first-hand knowledge of the level of disaster the flooding incident had caused in the area explaining that such visits will help to study what the federal government interventions will look like.
The statement revealed that the committee had visited the governor and some strategic areas in the state to study the situation.
The committee chairman decried the level of destruction in the sate explaining that different factors have contributed to the level of flooding and destruction happening in the state.
The statement further disclosed that the committee will visit different states in the country to examine the level of destruction caused by flooding with the motive of finding remedies for the communities. The committee chairman disclosed that he had discussed with the Jigawa state governor the plans to establish a sustainable land management practice and measures to cushion the impact of climate change.
It was also disclosed that Jigawa state has been identified as one of the worst states affected by flooding in the country. According to him, other environmental problems affecting the state include gully erosion, desertification, and land degradation, which prompted the visit to offer solutions to help the people.
In his response, the governor appreciated the committee member for identifying the state as one of the worst-hit states by flooding in the country. He explained that the sate has been affected by flood on a yearly basis which has affected the residents.
The governor disclosed that during the recent flood incident, 7,000 houses were taken over by the incident, and 6,500 farmlands were destroyed in the identified local government areas in the state.
The governor further lamented that the number of displaced persons due to the incident has risen to 8000; he explained that their households were destroyed, which has now taken them to the Internally displaced Camps scattered around the state.
The governor disclosed that the state government had internally committed to planting 5.5 million trees within the state. He noted that the initiative would reduce the impact of climate change, which has caused frequent flood incidents in the state.
He solicited the support of the committee to aid the state in implementing adequate measures that will help in safeguarding the state from environmental disasters.
