World Bank Team Visits Anambra

THE visiting World Bank experts to Anambra State, led by the Task Team Leader (TTL) Dr Amos Abu, has urged the citizens of the state to adopt as a way of life all the erosion control measures taught them by the group’s field officers and other partners agencies including the Anambra state government.

Dr. Abu noted that the involvement of all, especially the affected communities in the long and short term fight against flood and gully erosion menace in the state and other parts of the country has become paramount in the fight against the menace.

Speaking to newsmen at the Uruokpala/Umudunu gully erosion site, Dr. Abu said that the human being has been found to be at the centre of all erosion control efforts as well as causes.

The essence of the projects, he said, was to improve the livelihood of the people who live in the shadows and perimeters of gully erosion sites, adding that in doing so, the people would be restoring hope, life and jobs. 

The role of the Nigerian Erosion and Watershed Management Project, (NEWMAP), Abu reiterated, has a development objective of reducing vulnerability to soil erosion and other forms of land degradation in targeted watersheds.  In doing so, they the sponsors were coming up with a sustainable solution that combines the best of engineering with the human factor, adding that with the human factor is actually the game changer.

The team also visited the Nkpor Flyover Bridge on the Federal Highway a section of which has collapsed due to unexpected erosion activities at the base of the newly completed bridge.
This has forced closure of a section of the highway, thereby creating untold traffic jam at the Newparts/Nkpor market area round the clock.