Leadership (Abuja)
Mansur Sani Malam
7 January 2008
Government at all levels have been urged to give priority to afforestation programmes with a view to improving it and obtain its abandoned economic benefits.
This was disclosed in various papers presented at a workshop on people empowerment through forest economic recovery in Kano State, held recently at APCU headquarters, Kano.
In his paper entitled", Exploiting the potentials of Neem tree for economic growth", Malam Aminu Kabiru said that the potentials of Neem Tree, if properly managed, would be a source of wealth and economic growth for the nation.
Malam Kabiru also expressed his dismay with the abandoned economic benefits in Neem tree and others, saying their potentials were under utilised in the country.
He also explained that Neem tree was presently the most wide spread exotic species introduced via reforestation programme, an evergreen tree resistant to drought, saying it could also live up to 100 years while a ten-year old plan could produce up to 50 kilogramme of fruits yielding 10 to 15 kilo grammes of oil seeds.
He explained some of the important products which were of commercial value and which could be processed from the Neem tree, such as Neem oil, Neem bio-pesticides, Neem cake, Neem fertiliser, Neem coaled urea.
While also presenting his paper "Nursery development a tool for people empowerment", Malam Ali Dauda called on the local government chairmen in the state to assist anybody willing to develop private nursery in afforestation programme in order to contribute to the scenic beauty of a given environment, as well as improve the state vegetable cover and economic growth.
Speaking with LEADERSHIP, a resource person, Alhaji Ibrahim Ado Musa, called for the review of afforestation law in order to boost the programme as well as to acquire its benefits towards economic growth and the provision of employment opportunities.
He said there were many registered private nursery developers in Kano who were ready to provide training, fencing and working materials as incentives.
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