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President Muhammadu Buhari has challenged economically advanced countries to rise up to the task of saving the fast-receding Lake Chad from the impact of climate change. Receiving the visiting Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, in Abuja yesterday, Buhari warned that failure to regenerate the Lake Chad would lead to another round of migration by the people living in the areas.
The President, who led seven ministers to an interactive meeting with the UNESCO chief, said Nigeria and other countries of the Lake Chad Basin lacked the billions of dollars required to channel water from the Congo Basin into the lake to check its rapid depletion.
The ministers included those of Education, Adamu Adamu, Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, Finance, Kemi Adeosun, Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, State for Environment, Alhaji Ibrahim Usman among others.
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President Buhari commended UNESCO for its support for Nigeria, particularly on the ongoing rehabilitation work in the North East and reintegration of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).
He said the pathetic situation of IDPs require immediate and urgent response from international organisations such as UNSECO to provide infrastructure, health and education for the people in the area.Bokova, who commenced a week-long visit to West and Central Africa on August 6, said she was in Nigeria to strengthen the organisations programme in the areas of science and technology, gender and youth development, culture, water resources development, health and environment.
