BENIN CITY – The Chairman, Edo State Task Force on Forestry, Chief Henry Okoror, has charged Forestry stakeholders to collaborate with the Committee towards ensuring rational utilisation of forest products in order to protect the raw material base of wood industries in the state.
Chief Okoror, who gave the charge yesterday during a meeting with forestry stakeholders comprising of representatives of Saw Millers Association of Nigeria, Timber Lorry Owners Association of Nigeria and Timber Licensees Owners Association of Nigeria, also emphasised on the need to check areas of leakages and illegal exploitation.
He noted that Edo State used to have a very luxuriant forest estate which had declined in both quality and quantity over the years, adding that at present, over 80 percent of the forest cover had disappeared due to exploitation.
According to him, ”Forest resources are one of the bedrock of the state economy. At present, Edo State has over 250 Sawmills, 1000 bench mills, over 200 registered timber contractors, about 600 timber lorries, all dependent on the state forest resources, which are not renewable.
“The situation has induced high poverty especially among our rural population because forest provide most of their livelihoods for existence”, he said.
The chairman, therefore, appealed to them to support the Task Force on Forestry in its vision of maintaining peace and harmony among the stakeholders as well as the promotion of forest regeneration in the state.
Responding on behalf of the stakeholders, Chief Wilfred Obaseki and Mr. O. Onaghise, lauded Governor Oserheimen Osunbor for setting up the task force and promised to collaborate with the government towards restoring the state’s forest reserves.
They, however, flayed the activities of migrant Cocoa farmers who they blamed for the massive deforestation in the state and appealed to the task force to take appropriate measures to curb the act.
|
