The National Agency for the Great Green Wall (NAGGW), in collaboration with the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), has launched the Integrated Dryland Ecosystem Rehabilitation, Regeneration and Conservation (IDERRCN) project.
  
 Located in Kebbi, the project has set an ambitious target of restoring 2,500 hectares of degraded land, while plans are underway to rehabilitate an additional 3,000 hectares through improved land-use practices in the state.
  
The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Environment, Mahmood Kambari, revealed this during the project’s inception workshop held in Abuja.Kambari, who was represented by the Acting Director, Rural Development and Extension Services in the Agency, Mrs Habiba Lau, commended the collaboration between the UNEP, GEF, and the agency for the project. He said it will be a major environmental and socio-economic intervention for local communities across the Great Green Wall corridor in Kebbi State.
   
He emphasised the timeliness and importance of the initiative, particularly in light of the rising threat of land degradation and desertification in the northern part of the country.
  
The Permanent Secretary stated that human activities and poor land use, worsened by the impacts of climate change and rapid population growth, have severely affected ecosystems in the Sahel and Sahara regions.  He noted that the increasing vulnerability of people and the environment has heightened the risk of disasters such as floods, droughts, and food insecurity.
  
While expressing confidence in the project’s success, he reiterated the purpose of the Great Green Wall Initiative to reverse land degradation by empowering local communities in the sustainable management of natural resources. 
  
Earlier, the Director General, National Agency for the Great Green Wall (NAGGW), Saleh Abubakar, described IDERRCN as a flagship component under the broader regional programme titled, “Transformation Approach to Large Scale Investment in Support of the Implementation of the Great Green Wall Initiative (TALSISI-GGWI).”
  
Abubakar explained that the project was supported by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and will be implemented across 15 communities within five local councils of Kebbi State – Arewa, Augie, Argungu, Bunza, and Dandi.
   
The Director General further stated that the initiative is designed to combat land degradation, enhance soil fertility, boost vegetation cover, and improve the resilience of rural livelihoods affected by climate change and desert encroachment.
  
The workshop was attended by the Federal Ministry of Environment, Agriculture and Food Security, Water Resources, IFAD, Nigeria Conservation Foundation, the private sector and CSOs who praised the scope and scale of the project, describing it as a timely intervention to reverse ecological damage and empower communities through sustainable land management practices.