The committee will find ways to curbing deforestation.

The Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, Thursday, constituted a 25-man committee to work out ways to tackle deforestation in the six Area Councils of the city.

The Minister of State for Abuja, Olajumoke Akinjide, who doubles as the Chairperson of the committee, said that the committee was established to find a holistic approach to controlling deforestation in the Abuja.

Ms. Akinjide, who inaugurated the Committee, explained that Abuja is faced with various environmental problems, such as excessive heat, erosion, bush burning, flood, and loss of soil fertility, which have contributed to food insecurity.

“The effects of deforestation in FCT today cannot be overemphasized, since it is witnessed by all and sundry residing in the city. It is evident in the increased FCT daily temperature in recent times,” she said.

“ Few years ago, the highest daily temperature was as low as 27 degrees centigrade. But now, it is between 34 degrees centigrade and 37 degrees centigrade in some months of the year,” the minister added.

Ms. Akinjide decried the increasing rate of deforestation in FCT. She cited the frequent appearance of heaps of fire-wood, bags of charcoal and piles of timber exploitation from already over-exploited forests in major roads in the city as examples.

She urged members of the committee to identify the immediate and remote causes of deforestation in the FCT and proffer effective ways of enforcing the existing laws in the territory to curb it. She also directed the Committee to recommend possible areas of inter-departmental collaborations with a view to curbing deforestation and reducing its effects.

“The inauguration of the Committee will no doubt help to foster a harmonious relationship with our environment and lead to achieving a sustainable environmental development, especially now that the entire world is facing the menace of climate change/global warming that are having negative effects on the environment and man,” she held.