The managing director, Upper Niger River Basin Development Authority (UNRBDA), Prof. Mohammed Abdulkarim Ali, has said the health of rivers is inseparably tied to the health of planet earth, making their preservation imperative.
Prof. Ali made the assertion at a forum to mark the 2023 World Rivers Day with the theme: “Rights of the River” organised by UNRBDA in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation in Minna.
Ali said UNRBDA was poised to harness, conserve and develop both surface and underground water resources to improve the standard of living and quality of life of Nigerians.
He added that rivers mean a lot to humanity, and therefore, people need to take good care of water resources and have structures to store them.
The officer overseeing planning and design directorate of the agency, Engr. Timothy Auta, said the World Rivers Day was of utmost importance and value because of the importance of rivers.
Engr. Auta stated that rivers are valuable natural resources that if taken care of, meant caring for humanity and a lot of issues with climate change would be mitigated.
He said it had been catastrophic because of the fact that people don’t nurture the river ways, so it is important to sensitise them on the value of rivers.
Speaking on the ‘Rights of the River’, the guest speaker, Prof. John M. Jiya of the Federal University of Technology, Minna, said one of the rights of the river is that people should not build along waterways.
He said there should be a minimum of 30 metres from the bank of a river when considering putting up a structure but people hardly respect these things, and instead, they build into rivers and when disasters come they become major challenges.
Niger State commissioner for water resources and dam development who was represented by the permanent secretary in the ministry, Akilu Musa Kuta, said the state government would carry out an audit of rivers and basins in the state as part of efforts to protect lives and natural resources.
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