…Lauds Gov. Buni on Achievements
From Sani Gazas Chinade, Damaturu
Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, on Tuesday, had a fruitful meeting with Dr Sidi Ould Tah, President of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA), on areas of support and partnership between the Yobe state government and the bank, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
He said “This collaboration is of great importance to us as we strive to recover from the many years of devastation from the huge destruction caused by the Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria. Yobe state is the second most affected state by the Boko Haram insurgency.
“As you may be aware, Yobe state suffered protracted security challenges with the loss of many lives, destruction of government and private properties, infrastructures including schools, hospitals, water facilities, health institutions, roads, power supply and means of livelihood.
“Alhamdulillah, peace has substantially returned to our state. As a government, we took advantage of the improvement in peace to relocate our people back to their communities after rebuilding some of the infrastructures destroyed by the insurgency.
“I am also glad to inform you that our decision to close down the IDP camps, return the people to their communities, rebuild the infrastructure and work towards recovery of the economy to provide people with a means of livelihood, has been lauded and recognized as a role model by the United Nations Development Programme.
“However, it is a fact that the economy of the state is grossly inadequate to address the humongous destruction caused by the insurgency. This explains the importance of our meeting today, to explore avenues of support by your bank to accelerate the Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Recovery process of the state government.
“Mr. President, distinguished personalities, Yobe state has about 1.6 million hectares of arable land, and a population of four million people who are mostly subsistence farmers cultivating rice, Sesame seeds, millet, guinea corn, maize, wheat, cowpea, groundnuts, cotton, Gum Arabic, and vegetables on small scale.
“Similarly, in recognition of agriculture as the most veritable instrument for the post-insurgency economic recovery, we launched a Billion Naira Agricultural Empowerment Programme providing modern agricultural implements to 5,340 farmers.
“I wish to gladly inform Your Excellency and members of your team that Yobe is today a leading state in Sesame seeds and Gum Arabic production in Nigeria and one of the largest producers of livestock such as cattle, sheep, goats and camels.
“Yobe State also has large deposits of mineral resources in commercial quantities but has remained untapped due to a low inflow of investment into the sector.
“With the return of peace, Yobe state is now very peaceful, conducive and business-friendly with lots of opportunities for investments. The inauguration of the state-owned international Cargo airport provides an effective means of transportation of agricultural produce and livestock within Nigeria and outside the country.
“Most distinguished personalities, Yobe state, like other countries of the world, has always had its share of climate change. In the Northern part of the state, we face desert encroachment, and in other parts, the annual floods during the rainy season affect agricultural yields.
“Our desire to aggressively improve agriculture to ensure food security, build more roads, establish more schools and health facilities, provide safe drinking water, safeguard the environment and face other negative challenges affecting the state are areas of discussion and collaboration between the state and your bank.
“Mr President, my dear personalities, it may interest you to note that despite our efforts and interventions, we have not been able to cultivate half of the over 1,600,000 hectares of arable land in the seasonal rain-fed agriculture, while only 15 per cent of 360,000 hectares of the irrigable land is being utilized,” he stated.
Dr. Sidi Ould Tah, President of the Bank, commended Gov. Buni for reconstructing the infrastructures to revamp agriculture, education, Healthcare and others to improve the lives of the people.
He further assured that the bank would explore areas of partnership and cooperation to support the reconstruction and recovery programme of the state government.
“Mr Governor, l must commend you for putting your resources in the right place to serve your people. We are ready to support your laudable efforts to achieve the set goals” the president assured,” he said.
