Protecting the ocean from growing threats so that it can continue to feed communities around the world is the focus of the Fourth International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC4), hosted by Chile’s Ministry of the Environment and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). It opened on Monday, September 4, 2017 in La Serena, Chile.
Carl Gustaf Lundin, Director of IUCN’s Global Marine Programme
The Congress aims to improve the way man protects and manages the most diverse and productive areas of the ocean, as an imperative for marine life and for future generations. It will focus on the relationship between Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and global change, the relevance of ocean conservation to communities, and successful marine management strategies.
“Faced with critical threats to its health from climate change and over-exploitation, the ocean urgently needs protection. This Congress is a key opportunity to continue improving and expanding marine protection, notably close to coastal communities, where they can deliver food security and other benefits,” says Carl Gustaf Lundin, Director of IUCN’s Global Marine Programme.
During the event, IUCN will announce progress made towards meeting global marine protection targets. The Union will also launch a number of MPA publications and a new film on the scientific importance of seamounts, or underwater mountains.
The Congress will bring together decision-makers, including Ministers of the Environment from several countries, who will analyse ways to combine the management of MPAs with progress towards UN Sustainable Development Goal 14 – “to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development”.
“With this event, and the legacy of both marine and terrestrial protected areas that Chile has cemented under the administration of President Michelle Bachelet, our country is taking the lead in protecting our oceans worldwide,” says Chilean Minister of Environment and Co-Chairman of IMPAC 4, Marcelo Mena. “People are at the center of management measures and the protection of ecosystems and the environment. Having successful MPAs ensures that biodiversity conservation effectively projects benefits towards people.”
IMPAC 4 will highlight the intricate nature of the relationship between the ocean and communities worldwide, and the benefits that marine protected areas provide to millions of people.
“IMPAC congresses help the marine conservation community to develop tools and strategies to face future challenges,” says Dan Laffoley, Principal Advisor on Marine Science and Conservation for IUCN’s Global Marine and Polar Programme and Marine Vice-Chair for the World Commission on Protected Areas. “But this event is also about empowering youth and future leaders in the conservation community – and expanding that community as far as possible.”
The Congress is bringing together 1,000 scientists, decision-makers, marine protected area experts and public figures from around the world, including HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco, Yolanda Kakabadse, President of WWF International, and Sylvia Earle, renowned oceanographer of Mission Blue / the Sylvia Earle Alliance.
The meeting, which is organised by the Ministry of the Environment of Chile and IUCN’s World Commission on Protected Areas, will conclude on Saturday, September 9 with the signature of a “call for action for the oceans” in the city of Viña del Mar, Chile.
Namibia has begun work on two projects supported by the Green Climate Finance (GCF) aimed at bolstering rural people’s resilience.
Namibian Environment and Tourism Minister, Pohamba Shifeta
The start of the adaptation initiatives is said to mark an important phase of GCF’s efforts to ensure recipient countries control the flow of climate finance they receive. Implementing the projects is the Environmental Investment Fund, a GCF direct access Accredited Entity based in Namibia.
One of the projects, which builds on Namibia’s acknowledged leadership in tapping community expertise to manage natural resources, is the first of a pilot series introduced by GCF last year. The pilot of climate finance support is intended to encourage organisations based in developing countries to “directly access” GCF resources as Accredited Entities.
The other project will help poor farmers in the north Namibian regions of Zambezi, and Kavango East and West to weather the vagaries of a changing climate. Many people living in these areas rely on the crops they grow for sustenance.
The Namibian Government has been a strong backer of GCF-supported action as part of its national efforts to deal with climate change.
“I consider these projects to be an integral part of national efforts to mitigate the impacts of climate change and help eradicate poverty in this country,” said Namibian Environment and Tourism Minister, Pohamba Shifeta, at the official launch of the two climate initiatives last week in the Namibian capital of Windhoek.
“We have included climate change adaptation and mitigation as a critical strategic priority in our most recent planning frameworks,” added the Minister, noting Namibia is one of few countries which has drawn up a national Constitution that stipulates sustainable environmental management.
Namibian Deputy Prime Minister, Netumbo Nandi Ndaitwah, said the targeted northern regions are the country’s bread baskets.
“Climate change should not deter these three regions from fulfilling their role in the Namibian economy,” she said. “We should simply learn to adapt!”
While drought has posed a threat to Namibia, well known for its vast deserts, unseasonal high rainfalls earlier this year in this southern African nation also accentuates the devastation posed by flooding.
Namibia is one of the first African nations to receive GCF funds.
Precipitation extremes – in terms of both excess and deficient rainfall – have caused serious disruption with widespread socio-economic impacts in many countries in recent weeks.
The World Metereological Organisation (WMO) sheds light on some of the high-impact events.
Harvey: Vehicles are stranded as road network is flooded
Asia
As a result of torrential monsoon rains, almost 41 million people have been affected by flooding and landslides in Bangladesh, India and Nepal. More than 1,200 people are reported to have died. Tens of thousands of houses, as well as schools and hospitals, have been destroyed leaving people displaced, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
In India, as of August 24, 32.1 million people have been affected by flooding across Assam, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal. More than 600 people are known to have died. The India Meteorological Department issued an advisory on August 29 warning of very heavy rain over the next three days in parts of 12 states which were already hit by floods. India’s most populous city Mumbai was paralysed by flooding on August 29 to 31.
The cumulative seasonal rainfall from June 1 to August 30 shows that rainfall was normal in 24, in excess in six and deficient in six meteorological sub-divisions. The all-India cumulative value is for 683.6 mm, or 3% below the long-term average of 707.4 mm, according to the India Meteorological Department.
In Bangladesh, monsoon floods affected 32 districts in the northern, north eastern and central parts of the country, affecting more than eight million people. Almost 700,000 houses are damaged or destroyed. As a result of torrential monsoon rains, 35 of Nepal’s 75 districts have experienced severe flooding, affecting 1.7 million people. Almost 65,000 houses are destroyed and 460,000 people displaced, according to OCHA.
In Pakistan, the coastal metropolitan city of Karachi received 88 mm of rainfall on 31 August, compared to the monthly average of 60 mm, causing widespread flooding.
Tropical cyclone Hato brought high winds and rain to Hong Kong and Macau on 23 August, China, causing devastation in Macau in particular. The China Meteorological Administration on 1 September issued a warning of the season’s 16th typhoon expected to make landfall on Guandong coast.
Submerged part of BIPC Quarters, Makurdi
Africa
The total seasonal rainfall is above-average over most of the Sahelian region and West Africa. Torrential rains at the end of August caused already swollen rivers to burst their banks in a number of countries, including Nigeria and Niger. Dozens of casualties were reported in the worst floods since 2012.
Sierra Leone witnessed disastrous landslides near the capital Freetown. This followed a cumulative rainfall from August 1 through August 14, 2017 (1459.2mm) was over 300 percent of normal (normal rainfall for month of August is 791mm). During the period, significant rain ranging from 30 – 175mm fell continuously on a daily basis, with exceptionally heavy downpours from August 10 to 14 (daily minimum of 160mm). The cause of such continuous heavy downpour was attributed to uninterrupted influx of moisture into the coastal area coupled with strong convection in a super-saturated atmosphere.
At least 150 people are believed to have died in a landslide in a fishing village in Ituri province of the Democratic Republic of Congo from August 15 to 16.
Rainfall performance was generally normal in most of the Greater Horn of Africa region, according to the IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre. “The rainfall condition in the Greater Horn of Africa region during the month of July 2017 continue to bring with it a relief in some of the areas especially in the northern sector and north-western sector of the GHA,” it said.
Rainfall less than 75% of the long term average was experienced in central and western Sudan; in much of Eritrea, Djibouti, north-eastern Ethiopia, Rwanda and Burundi; and in parts of north-western Somalia, south-western Uganda, central and eastern Kenya, and in eastern Tanzania.
North America
This year so far has been one of the warmest on record for the contiguous United States, with the January-July temperature ranking as the 2nd highest since records began in 1895. It has also been a wetter than average year (even before Hurricane Harvey), with the precipitation total for the first seven months of the year ranking as the seventh wettest in the 123-year record, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Temperatures and precipitation have been above average. The Climate Extremes Index ranked as the third highest on record. There have been nine billion dollar weather disasters prior to Hurricane Harvey, which broke the record-long streak of a major hurricane not hitting the United States.
Hurricane Harvey
Unprecedented rainfall totals from tropical cyclone Harvey caused catastrophic flooding in southeastern Texas and southeastern Louisiana, leaving dozens of casualties, displacing thousands and causing huge economic disruption.
Large parts of southeast Texas saw more than 30-35 inches (762-889 mm) with isolated amounts up to 42 inches (1067 mm) of rain since August 24. Cedar Bayou in Texas received 51.88 inches of rain (1300 mm), according to the U.S. National Weather Prediction Center.
In South America, the extreme rains experienced in the past months were supplanted by drought episodes in several countries during August. Moreover, winter rains have helped to alleviate drought conditions in the northern areas of South America. However, according to forecasters, there are concerns that a drier pattern will return to these areas during the spring, raising concerns about the drought conditions later in the season. This includes portions of Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana and northern Brazil.
In Bolivia, the department of Tarija in the south of the country was affected by the drought in August. The Sama forest suffered severe fires causing death and property damage, while the Bolivian departments of Chuquisaca and Santa Cruz suffered cattle losses due to drought.
Forecasters report that dryness will not only lead to the risk of severe drought in other areas of South America, but also a greater threat of forest fires. Drier than normal conditions in eastern and central Brazil during the month of August are likely to lead to worsening drought conditions in the spring. The greatest threat will be for the Brazilian states of Paraná to the north. This dry climate during the spring could have an impact on several crops throughout the region, including coffee, soybeans and corn.
The southernmost areas in Brazil and Paraguay, Uruguay and northern Argentina have had adequate rains during the month of August and are expected to be slightly above normal for spring. This includes the Brazilian states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina, as well as the capitals of Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina.
According to CIIFEN, measurements and predictions of sea surface temperature for the period August-October 2017 indicate that the Central and Eastern Equatorial Pacific will be in neutral conditions, ie without anomalies. The evolution of the oceanic and atmospheric variables currently favors the establishment of neutral conditions in the Tropical Pacific, that is to say that at present the probabilities for El Niño and La Niña are low.
Europe
Parts of Italy and Southern France suffered severe drought, with the situation in Corsica reaching near record precipitation deficits. The rainfall deficit contributed to serious wildfires in southern France at the end of July. There were also devastating wildfires, with dozens of casualties in Portugal in June.
Failure to up investment in protecting and restoring drylands – soils in particular – could put future food supplies at risk and hamper efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change, says the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) ahead of the 13th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP13), which opens on Wednesday, September 6, 2017 in Ordos, China.
Ordos, China is hosting the 13th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP13)
Drylands, which include habitats such as savannahs, mist forests and oases, cover 41% of all land on Earth. They are home to one third of the world’s population and store 36% of global terrestrial carbon. They also sustain 44% of the world’s cultivated systems and 50% of the world’s livestock. Most of dryland biodiversity is found in the soil, which determines the overall fertility and productivity of the land.
“Species and ecosystems below and above ground are the engines of life in drylands, whose importance in sustaining billions of lives around the world is often underestimated,” says Inger Andersen, the IUCN Director General. “Drylands secure food and water supplies for local people, mitigate climate change and reduce the impacts of disasters. Their soils, however, form slowly and are easily damaged. IUCN urges countries to invest in conserving these ecosystems for the vital services they provide, and for the crucial role they play in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.”
Land degradation in drylands – known as desertification – could result in a 12% fall in global food production in the next 25 years. It could also contribute to global carbon dioxide emissions, with about 60% of carbon in soils lost through land degradation. It is estimated that between 25 and 35% of drylands are being degraded, which undermines their productivity. Over 250 million people are directly affected, and a further one billion in over one hundred countries are at risk.
IUCN calls for urgent investment in restoring and sustainably managing drylands as a high priority for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, including to combat climate change, reduce poverty, increase food and water security, and boost health and economic growth.
“Sustainable land management practices can prevent the degradation, and improve the productivity and resilience of drylands,” says Jonathan Davies, Coordinator of IUCN’s Global Drylands Initiative. “These practices involve protecting biodiversity, including the bacteria, fungi and insects that live in the soil and which maintain nutrient and hydrological cycles. Biodiversity is also vital for pollination which is a major factor in overall agricultural production. Sustainable land management is a viable policy option for countries to address development and environmental challenges.”
Some traditional crop farming and livestock production practices developed by dryland communities involve minimising tillage and planting trees alongside crops to maintain soil organic matter and moisture. It is estimated that by sustainably managing soils, food production could increase by up to 58%. Improved livestock production and rangeland management could sequester up to 2,000 million metric tons of carbon dioxide by 2030, which is more than the 2015 CO2 emissions of Russia.
IUCN urges countries to sustainably manage land by strengthening the rights of local communities and by facilitating finance opportunities for small and medium agribusinesses that engage in sustainable land management. Countries are also encouraged to restore large-scale degraded dryland landscapes.
The UNCCD COP13 takes place from September 6 to 16 in Ordos, Inner Mongolia, China.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) European Region has marked what seems like an important step on the road from malaria control to malaria elimination, and then on to maintaining malaria-free status, with the launch of “The Ashgabat Statement: Preventing the re-establishment of malaria transmission in the WHO European Region”. The Statement was formally presented on Monday, September 4, 2017 in Moscow, Russian Federation.
Dr Nedret Emiroglu, Director of the Division of Health Emergencies and Communicable Diseases at WHO/Europe
“I applaud the pledge made by these countries and their leaders,” said Dr Nedret Emiroglu, Director of the Division of Health Emergencies and Communicable Diseases at WHO/Europe. “Protecting European people from the return of malaria requires strong political support from governments, substantial financial investments and a collective will to work together in partnership.”
The meeting also serves as the occasion for the launch of a new book, “Malaria in Europe: On the way to elimination in the WHO European Region 2000-2015”, which tells the story of how Europe became the first WHO region to be declared malaria-free after reporting zero malaria cases for the first time in 2015.
According to the WHO, the achievement was made possible through a combination of strong political commitment, heightened detection and surveillance of malaria cases, integrated strategies for mosquito control with community involvement, cross-border collaboration and effective communication to people at risk.
Building on this milestone, the 10 Central Asia and Caucasus countries that had been the last stronghold for malaria in the Region − Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, the Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan − confirmed their commitment to preventing malaria reintroduction by signing the Ashgabat Statement. The Statement moves them forward from the 2005 Tashkent Declaration: “The move from malaria control to elimination” in the WHO European Region, which was signed by the same group of countries.
The Tashkent Declaration represented a turning point in efforts to achieve a malaria-free Europe, as it paved the way for the Regional strategy: From malaria control to elimination in the WHO European Region 2006-2015, which provided guidance that helped affected European countries to reduce the number of indigenous malaria cases from 90,712 in 1995 to zero in 2015.
The Ashgabat Statement outlines the commitment to control malaria importation, prevent the re-establishment of local transmission, and rapidly contain any resurgence of the disease. As long as malaria continues to circulate globally, people travelling to and from malaria-endemic countries can import the disease to Europe.
The Regional framework for prevention of malaria reintroduction and certification of malaria elimination 2014-2020 provides guidance to support European countries as they work to maintain the Region’s malaria-free status. It describes how to avoid a resurgence of malaria, prevent its reintroduction and adhere to the malaria-free certification process.
10 countries convene at Moscow meeting
Representatives from the 10 countries are meeting in Moscow from September 4 to 5, 2017. Over the course of two days of discussion, delegates will chart a course for how they can work together to keep the Region malaria-free.
“It is significant that this meeting is taking place in the Russian Federation, a country that has played a substantial role in supporting the fight against malaria both in Europe and globally,” said Dr Melita Vujnovic, WHO Representative in the Russian Federation.
By eliminating malaria, the Region has made a substantial contribution to furthering the vision outlined by the Global Technical Strategy for Malaria 2016-2030 – namely, a world free of malaria.
“The Russian Federation has been an important partner to WHO in progressing toward this vision,” said Dr Pedro Alonso, Director of WHO’s Global Malaria Programme. “It has provided its technical expertise, its leadership and its financial support to strengthen the skills of those fighting malaria in endemic countries of Central Asia and Africa.”
As a result of the Russian Federation’s technical and financial contributions, close to 800 national malaria control managers and senior health professionals from 79 countries were trained in state-of-the-art malaria control and elimination.
The government of Germany and the United Nations (UN) on Monday, September 4, 2017 co-signed the bilateral agreement which forms the legal basis for organising and hosting the 23rd Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP23) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) holding in the German city of Bonn from November 6 to 17, 2017.
UNFCCC Head Patricia Espinosa and German State Secretary Walter Lindner sign the agreement
The conference, which is organised by the Bonn-based UNFCCC and is presided over by Fiji, is organisationally and logistically supported by the German government, with further support from the state of North-Rhine-Westphalia and the City of Bonn.
When signing the agreement on behalf of Germany, State Secretary Walter Lindner of the German Foreign Office stressed the geopolitical significance of climate action in a world in which the impacts of climate change and the urgency to act are becoming increasingly apparent.
“Climate change often causes water and food shortages, leads to conflicts over land and resources and consequently gives rise to refugee and migration crises. The UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn is therefore of particular global relevance. And once again, Bonn has an opportunity to demonstrate its caliber as a UN city and as a conference location,” he said.
Commending Germany’s climate leadership, UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa, the UN’s top climate change official, said: “Germany’s support for Fiji, for the UN climate change team and for every person who will attend COP23 shows the country’s commitment to climate and sustainable development goals. For participants ranging from Heads of State and Ministers to CEOs of major companies, civil society and young people, Germany will be the hub global climate action in November.”
UNFCCC’s Patricia Espinosa with German State Secretary Walter Lindner and Fijian Ambassador Deo Saran
“Germany has given the UN a home in Bonn with world-class facilities – the UN campus and the World Conference Centre. The City of Bonn has been an exemplary partner to work with, as has the government of the State of North Rhine Westphalia. And Bonn is a UN city and is now truly becoming a sustainability hub,” she added.
The central aim of the November climate meeting COP23, which will be attended by more than 20,000 participants, is to take forward work on the implementation of the Paris Climate Change Agreement and to galvanise climate action by all relevant stakeholders.
The signing ceremony was also attended by Deo Saran, Fiji’s ambassador to Belgium and permanent representative to the European Union.
The Minister of State for Environment, Ibrahim Usman Jibril, has called on international donor agencies and other philanthropists to support the Benue State Government in tackling the menace of the flood within its confines.
Minister of State for Environment, Ibrahim Usman Jibril, speaking with the media during the tour of flooded sites in Benue State
Jibril stated this on Monday, September 4, 2017 in Makurdi while on an assessment tour of the flooded areas and some camps for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the state.
The minister, who expressed concerns over the level of devastation, said it was beyond the capacity of the state.
He appealed to the international community to assist the state government to tackle the disaster.
He attributed the cause of the flood to indiscriminate building on waterways and the blockage of drains which interrupted water flow.
“This situation is devastating; we will seek help from the international agencies for the flood victims in Benue.
“Many people built on water ways and blocked water channels in Makurdi, I have gone round the town and discovered that there are buildings in areas that ordinarily should not harbor them.
“It is not easy for the state government to demolish such buildings but we hope that the people will collaborate with the relevant government agencies to address the issue,” he said.
He reiterated the Federal Government’s resolve to assist the state to overcome the disaster.
Also fielding questions from reporters, the Deputy Governor, Benson Abounu, said the state government was overwhelmed by the flood.
He said that 21 local government councils were facing “serious ecological challenges”.
Abounu said the challenges ranged from collapsed bridges, culverts, roads, farmlands, houses, among others.
He listed the erosion sites to include Guma, Makurdi, Tarka, Gboko, Obi, Otukpo, Ukum, Katsina-Ala and others.
The Deputy Governor conducted the minister round the affected areas within the state capital.
The state government donated over 200 locally fabricated cooking stoves to the IDPs.
Presenting the stoves, the state commissioner for Water Resources and Environment, Joseph Utsev, charged the IPDs to make judicious use of the available amenities at the camp.
The Lagos State Government on Monday, September 4, 2017 flagged off the reconstruction of a 10-lane Oshodi-International Airport Road, with a pledge to complete the project within the next 15 months.
An impression of the Oshodi-International Airport Road after reconstruction
The state Commissioner for Waterfront Infrastructure Development, Adebowale Akinsanya, said at the ceremony that the project was in line with the state government’s commitment to transform the entire axis.
Mr. Akinsanya said that the state government took it upon itself to undertake the reconstruction of the road, being one of the busiest roads in the state with vehicular volumes average of 50,000 vehicles daily.
According to him, the poor state of the road is not acceptable for the status of the state as the fifth largest economy in Africa and the nation’s commercial hub.
Mr. Akinsanya said some of the fences along the corridor had been identified to be within the right of way, adding that government would minimise the impact of the project on property owners.
“To fast-track the project, three groups of workers will work on the project and they will work day and night, while upon completion, the project will be linked to the Oworonshoki Reclamation Project, which is also ongoing,” he said.
State of the Oshodi-International Airport Road prior to reconstruction
The commissioner said that a stakeholders’ meeting would hold on Thursday to sensitise people of the area about the project.
He urged the residents and motorists to cooperate with the state government while the construction would last, saying that the intention was to transform the area.
“There will be some minor inconveniences, but we are going to mitigate the impact. The work will be accelerated.
“The project is to make life easier for everybody. We just want to appeal to people to cooperate with us.
“We will be here to talk to the people in case of any issue, and we are also working with our partner, the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN),” Mr. Akinsanya said.
Also, Biodun Otunola, the Managing Director of Planet Projects, the firm that designed the project, said that, prior to the commencement of the construction, adequate feasibility studies were carried out.
Mr. Otunola said that the project, upon completion, would facilitate total transformation of Oshodi and International Airport corridor.
The managing director said that, in as much as there would not be alternative roads created specifically for the project, adequate measures had been put in place to educate the public on the staging that would be developed.
He said that the project would be executed in phases, while motorists would make use of other sections of the road during construction work on a particular section.
The project designs include reconstruction and expansion of the existing carriage to a three-lane expressway on both directions, construction of two-lane service roads in both directions.
There is the construction of a Ramp Bridge to provide a U-turn from Ajao Estate to Airport, construction of a flyover at NAHCO/Toll Gate and drainage works.
Others include the removal of existing Pedestrian Bridge at Ajao Estate and construction of Pedestrian Bridges at Ajao Estate and NAHCO/Hajj Camp, construction of Slip Road to provide access to Ajao Estate, construction of Lay-bys and installation of street lights.
The Lagos State High Court has restrained a former Nigeria international professional footballer, Wilson Oruma, and a firm, Dok Engineering Services Limited, from entering a piece of land measuring 57,739.633square metres at Idasho Village, Elekan in Ibeju Lekki.
Wilson Oruma
Justice W. Animahun granted an interim injunction restraining the defendants whether by themselves or their agents “from attempting to enter, entering or alienating or in any way disturbing the claimant’s possession of all that land…”
The order, granted for seven days on August 24, was to subsist pending the hearing and determination of the substantive motion on notice for interlocutory injunction.
The claimant, through its counsel K. C. Atuenyi, applied to the court for an extension of the order in the face of the long vacation to prevent the respondents from encroaching on the land while the suit was still pending.
Justice M. O. Obadina, who took over from Justice Animahun as the vacation judge, granted an extension of the order for another seven days. It will lapse on September 12.
The claimant, Megallus Nigeria Limited, is praying for an order compelling Oruma to assign and endorse all documents transferring his rights over the property.
In an affidavit of urgency, the claimant’s Managing Director, Ifeanyi Okafor, claimed that, during the pendency of the suit and upon commencement of the long vacation, Dok Engineering “in collusion” with the Oruma, “forcefully beset the land” and started erecting fences and partitioning the property in dispute into two equal halves.
The claimant said it was “in the bid to hoodwink the honourable court into believing that it (Dok Engineering) is in actual possession, and which we verily believe is also an act preparatory to selling and/or alienating same in a manner that will render nugatory any eventual judgment of the Honourable Court.”
Megallus Nigeria accused the respondents of contempt and urged the court to hear the suit urgently.
The claimant said that, sometime in August 2013, Oruma offered it a parcel of land for sale, and it made a part-payment of N5 million out of N90 million, with the balance to be paid in four months.
The claimant said that due to its inability to complete the balance, a new payment plan was drawn up, in which he paid additional N15 million, with the balance to be paid by March 31, 2014.
The firm said when it sought to complete the payment and presented Oruma with eight managers’ cheques on March 31, 2014, totalling N70 million, the defendant allegedly refused to collect the cheques and also did not execute the instruments of transfer, including deed of assignment.
The claimant said the former footballer instead offered to refund the N20 million part payment, rather than collecting full payment.
According to Megallus Nigeria, Oruma claimed that he received an offer double what the claimant first offered and, therefore, would not accept a lesser offer.
But the claimant said the defendant “is estopped from reneging on an obligation voluntarily contracted and upon which the claimant had already furnished consideration to the extent that it can no longer revert to its former position.”
Megallus Nigeria said Dok Engineering (the second defendant), which claimed to have also bought the land from Oruma, could not rely on any agreement between it and the ex-footballer to overreach the claimant’s initial agreement with Oruma.
Besides, the claimant said a deed of assignment between Dok Engineering and Oruma “was fraudulently procured” as the suit had already been instituted and proceedings ongoing when the deed of assignment, dated October 15, 2014, was procured.
Megallus Nigeria said requirements of the law were not complied with in executing the deed, including obtaining the governor’s consent, adding that it was not signed by the truly accredited representatives of families entitled to deal in or dispose of the land.
The claimant also sought an order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendants from entering or alienating or disturbing the claimant’s possession of the land.
Megallus Nigeria prayed for an order nullifying or setting aside any sale, alienation, assignment or transfer of the land to Dok Engineering or any other person by Oruma.
However, the defendants are praying the court to dismiss the suit.
Oruma claimed the plaintiff did not pay for the land in line with the agreement.
Dok Engineering is claiming it acquired the land legally, therefore, the suit was unmeritorious.
Justice Obadina adjourned until September 8 for hearing of the motion on notice.
A previously degraded acreage in a semi-arid settlement in Niger Republic has metamorphosed into life-giving grassland, thanks to a sustainable land management initiative that is now in its second phase.
Mahamadou Issoufou, President of Niger
Prior to the intervention in Tchirofondou, located in Urban Commune of Say within the confines of the Region of Tillaberi, the community was a bare stretch of dry, sullied land. But the transformed drylands now feature a stretch of vegetation in form of vegetables, grasses, trees and economic crops, which has become a source of livelihood to the local people.
Located 65km south of Niamey, the nation’s capital, Tchirofondou is one of the land recovery sites under PAC3, a CFA 13,888,450 worth project bearing two components that are listed to include:
Recovery of land degraded by the CES/DRS method with plantation of acacia Senegal and seedling of herbaceous plants on an area of 30 hectares (ha); and
Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR) on an area of 70ha.
Plagued by land degradation due to high human and livestock pressure accentuated by a decline in rainfall, as well as shifting cultivation, Tchirofondou at the end of the 2016 wintering season reportedly produced a significant amount of straw that was judiciously used by the management committee. The produce, it was gathered, was used to feed animals, and build granaries and homes.
In the 2017 crop year however, the community has requested support from PAC3 to begin development of the site. The women of the various villages undertook a trial to produce cereal (sorghum) and legume (groundnut) in accordance with the objective of the micro project (increase in agro-sylvo-pastoral production). The experience is said to come from start-up and monitored closely by the municipality and all concerned technical departments.
The ANR component is implemented in the fields of the volunteers with the supervision of the service of the environment and the PAC3 personnel.
The revelations were made to a group of journalists and communicators attending the Regional Workshop on Communicating Project Results to Different Audiences in Niamey recently under the Building Resilience through Innovation, Communication and Knowledge Services (BRICKS) project. It was supported by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Global Environment Facility (GEF), World Bank, Sahara and Sahel Observatory (OSS) and Permanent Interstate Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS).
An indigene of Tchirofondou, Ismanu Madu, said: “We now plant sorghum. Initially, we were faced with a lot of difficulties. From the fodder grown on the site, we were able to take care of our expenses. With the project, everything invested has helped improve living conditions and women’s livelihood.
“All the women are mobilised and have to work in order to draw the maximum benefits of the project. Even after the project ends, they will continue, as they have seen its benefits.”
Referring to the numerous bow-shaped mounds made of earth on the field, another local folk submitted: “It is used to trap the rain water, which infiltrates the soil, and from where vegetation grows. It is called the ‘half moon’.
“The site depends on rainfall exclusively. For the future, we plan to dig boreholes on this site as well as on others. The crops we grow here are drought-resistant, such as sorghum, peanuts, okra and sesame. We do mixed cropping. We sell grass for animal feed and gum Arabic, which yields about CFA 800,000 per ha per annum.
“We have other sites (total of 26 sites) that have started planting the gum Arabic, and it is on the basis of this that we did this projection. PAC1 and PAC2 featured 45,000 ha with the cultivation of gum Arabic and fodder grass. However, 86,000 ha are being cultivated under PAC3, with the cultivation of agricultural produce, gum Arabic and fodder grass.”
