The Nigerian government in collaboration with World Bank has launched Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL) Project, to address environmental challenges in Northern states of the country.

Minister of Environment, Mohammed Abdullahi, at the Pre- launch Mission of the World Bank project, in Abuja, the nation’s capital said the project with the collaboration of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ministry of Water Resources and with the support of the World Bank, would last for five to six years.

Abdullahi assured that the project would be implement effectively, adding that all documentations on the project must get to the World Bank as soon as possible.

According to him, the project is very important, as it will also address water stress system and restore the loss lands, thereby, making the lands to be reproductive for agriculture.

Mr. Abdullahi noted that the project will also tackle environmental challenges such as climate change, erosion system, biodiversity, among others.

“We thank the world bank for initiating this project and I am assuring you that from the ministry of environment, we will do all the best we can to implement the project. We will ensure that the political way to drive this project in accordance with the mandates and it’s objectives are achieved.

“We are going to make sure that various governors at the state levels ensure they deliver on the objectives of the project.

“I have instructed national project coordinator to ensure that all the documentations that are needed by the world bank to declare the effectiveness of the project reach the world bank latest by April, 15.“

Mr. Abdullahi further said that the ministry had also established project tracker system in the office, adding that the system would enhance in the achievement of the project.

He urged all the Governors, Commissioners other relevant stakeholders to support in the implementation of the project through strong cooperation and commitment.

The Minister of State for Environment, Sharon Ikeazor said that collective action in the implementation of the project, would bring positive result.

Ikeazor said if the project implemented effectively, about 70 per cent of environmental issues would be solved in the states.

“We are ready to implement the project, with the two ministers that we are working together with, I think it will enhance in the execution of the project.

“This project is a big one and it is a project that Nigeria is privileged to have, I want to thank the world bank team and the three ministries for their strong support and commitment on implementation of the project,” Ikeazor stated.

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Mahmood Abubakar, said the project which was initiated by the World Bank when he was still the Minister of Environment, was to improve the lively hood of all the people in the Semi-Arid areas.

“I have great passion about this project, because I know that it will change lives of many people and the various communities in the states for good. This project will improve livelihood of the people, thereby, it requires careful planning, good management and commitment from everyone.”

Minister of Water Resources, Mr Suleiman Adamu, urged all the states, local governments and other beneficiaries of the project to claim ownership of the project for its sustainability.

“The State governors and the people of all the states should ensure that the effort of the World Bank and the Federal Government will not be a waste, there is a need to secure the project and ensure that its benefit is actualised,“ the Minister stated.

World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, Mr. Shubham Chaudhuri said the World Bank would continue to support Nigeria to ensure that the objective of the project was achieved.

“The World Bank team remained committed to this project, but I want to appeal to all tiers of government at all levels to ensure that the team and other people in the field are protected.”

Mr. Shubham however urged the Nigerian government to ensure that the challenges of insecurity are tackled in the areas to enable people concentrate and do the job effectively.

Governor of Nasarawa State, Abdullahi Suleiman, who spoke on behalf of other governors, commended the World Bank that the project would benefit all the people in the states.

“We are happy and grateful to have this laudable project, the project will curb poverty and address environmental challenges in our state.

“We as governors will ensure that we support the World Bank team and the Federal Government in ensuring that the insecurity issue is tackle efficiently in the states,” he added.

The Practical Manager, Environment, Natural Resources and Blue Economy West and Central Africa, for World Bank Mr. Sanjay Srivastava, noted that the project is to address three critical development challenge for Nigeria.

“As you all know Nigeria is going to be facing tremendous challenge because of climate change, particularly the issue of desertification, as you all know the desert is expanding from the Northern side is coming into your state which means that lot of productive land, lot of soil erosion will take place, lot of productive land would be converted into unproductive land, so this project is trying to address the issue of desertification and stop desertification,” Mr Sanjay explained.

He added that the project would be mainly focus on the poor farmers and poor people, Agriculture and landscape, and the World Bank would provide seven hundred million dollars concessional loan to finance the project.

The Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes, ACReSAL Project, will increase the implementation of sustainable landscape management practices in northern Nigeria and strengthen the country’s long-term enabling environment for integrated climate-resilient landscape management.

The Stone Circles of Senegambia are the largest group of megalithic complexes yet recorded in any region of the world.

There are 1,053 Stone circles and a total of 28,931 monoliths.

Their quality suggests sophisticated stone working traditions.

The Senegambian Stone Circles can be found in the modern countries of Gambia and Senegal.

Of the 1000 stone circles, 93 of them have been inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

These include the Sine Ngayène complex in Senegal, as well as the Wanar, Wassu and Kerbatch complexes in Gambia.

Apart from these stone circles, the sites also contain numerous tumuli and burial mounds.

The inscribed site corresponds to four large groups of megalithic circles located in the extreme western part of West Africa, between the River Gambia and the River Senegal.

These sites, Wassu, and Kerbatch in Gambia, and Wanar and Sine Ngayene in Senegal, represent an extraordinary concentration of more than 1,000 stone circles and related tumuli spread over a territory of 100 km wide and 350 km in length, along the River Gambia.

Together, the four groups comprise 93 circles and associated sites, some of which have been excavated, some of which have revealed archaeological material and human burials, from pottery to iron instruments and ornamentation dating between the 1 st and 2nd millennia to our era.

These four megalithic sites are the most dense concentration in the zone and have Outstanding Universal Value, representing a traditional monumental megalithic construction spread out over a vast area, with more than 1,000 stone circles scattered along one of the major rivers of Africa.

The Sine Ngayene complex (Senegal) is the largest site in the area. It consists of 52 circles of standing stones, including one double circle.

In all, there are 1102 carved stones on the site. Around 1km to the east, (outside the inscribed property) is the quarry from which the monoliths were extracted and where the sources of around 150 stones can be traced.

The site was excavated around 1970, and more recently by Bocoum and Holl.

The work established that the single burials appeared to precede in time the multiple burials associated with the stone circles.

The Wanar complex (Senegal) consists of 21 circles including one double circle.

The site contains 9 ‘lyre’ stones or bifed stones, sometimes with a cross piece strung between the two halves.

The Wassu complex (Guinea) consists of 11 circles and their associated frontal stones.

This site has the highest stones of the area.

The most recent excavations conducted on these megalithic circles date to the Anglo-Gambian campaign led by Evans and Ozanne in 1964 and 1965.

The finds of burials enabled the dating of the monuments between 927 and 1305 AD. The Kerbatch complex consists of 9 circles, including a double circle.

The site possesses a ‘bifid’ stone, the only known one in the area.

The stones forming the circles were extracted from nearby laterite quarries using iron tools and skilfully shaped into almost identical pillars, either cylindrical or polygonal, on average around 2 m in height and weighing up to 7 tons. Each circle contains between eight to fourteen standing stones having a diameter of four to six metres.

The four megalithic sites inscribed bear witness to a prosperous and highly organized society with traditions of stone circle constructions, associated with burials, and persisting in certain areas over more than a millennium.