Governor Ahmed Aliyu of Sokoto State has flagged off the 2025 Tree Planting Campaign with a call on residents and local councils to join efforts to curb desertification, which he described as a growing threat to farmlands in the state.
Speaking at the launch on Friday in Sokoto New City, Kasarawa, Aliyu disclosed that thousands of seedlings had been procured by the Ministry of Environment for distribution across the 23 local government areas.
He directed council chairmen to collect and distribute them without delay.
“Sokoto, as we all know, is located in the Sahelian region, making it prone to desert encroachment, which is advancing at an alarming rate. We must therefore rise to this challenge,” the governor said.
He urged residents to desist from indiscriminate felling of trees, stressing that any tree cut down must be replaced with a new one.
“As Muslims, we know the position of our religion on the benefits of tree planting and the eternal reward attached to it. Planting trees can be regarded as sadaqatul jariyya (a continuous charity) whose reward continues even after death,” Aliyu added.
The governor also commended the National Agency for the Great Green Wall (GGW) for allocating 450,000 date seedlings to Sokoto as part of a nationwide initiative to combat climate change and desert encroachment.
“These seedlings will be raised in nursery centers located in Gundunga, Goronyo town, and Sanyinna, and they will be distributed to individuals, NGOs, schools, mosques, hospitals, and other institutions,” he explained.
Commissioner for Environment, Nura Tangaza, noted that the state targets planting 500,000 seedlings this year, adding, “The success of this campaign depends on the active participation of our communities.”
The Director General of the GGW, Dr. Saleh Abubakar, represented by the Director of Afforestation, reaffirmed the agency’s support for halting desertification across 11 northern states under the Great Green Wall initiative.