By Gbenga Akingbule
National Chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC) Dr Abdullahi Ganduje at the weekend advocated for immediate utilisation of additional rivers towards the recharging of Lake Chad.
Gatekeepers News reports that Ganduje said the urgent appeal is part of efforts to address the lake’s rapid shrinking, which has pose serious environmental and socio-economic challenges for the region.
Ganduje, a former Executive Secretary of the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC), made the call while delivering his remarks at end of the 5th meeting of LCBC Governors’ Forum held at the University of Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria.
According to Ganduje who was also a former Governor of Kano state, LCBC member countries which include Cameroon Niger and Nigeria, must take urgent steps to recharge Lake Chad by utilising other available options.
“We need to think outside the box, we must think of multiple sources of transferring water into Lake Chad. Let’s look at River Niger, River Benue, River Gongola, River Kaduna, River Hadejia, Jamaare, Yobe.
“We need to look at the these rivers, feasibility studies should be carried out for the possibility of transferring water from these rivers down into Lake Chad,” Ganduje said.
