Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe state has pledged to protect the ecological system in an effort to improve environmental sustainability in the state.

The governor stated this at the flag-off of 2020 Gombe Goes Green (3G) tree planting campaign in Wajari district of Yamaltu-Deba local government area of the state, with the theme “Greener Gombe for Greater Gombe.”

He said the government will continue to enhance and protect the ecological system upon which all lives and livelihoods depend.

The governor stated that the overall launch of the Gombe Goes Green (3G) initiative on the 28th of August 2019 was aimed at addressing some of the pressing ecological problems facing the state.

He said the determination of his administration to address these environmental challenges led to the launching of the 3G project which targets the planting of 1 million trees annually over a period of four years.

The governor stated that through aggressive forestation and reforestation, the 3G project seeks to combat land degradation, desertification, erosion, loss of soil nutrients and rehabilitate degraded land.

“Since we launched the 3G project, we achieved significant milestones in the establishment of eight 20-hectare woodlots in 9 local government areas of the state and planted over 20,000 trees along the major roads within Gombe metropolis.

The governor further said Gombe state has over the years spent huge amounts of its resources in controlling gullies that are threatening social life and physical infrastructure in the metropolis and other local government areas.

“The unwavering commitment of our administration to environmental sustainability has inspired the state to initiate the largest and most comprehensive environmental restoration project in the North-east sub-region,” he said.

 Governor Yahaya also said his administration’s resolve to prioritise and preserve the environment was necessitated by the realisation of the severity and diversity of the environmental challenges confronting the state.