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THE LAND OF ENDLESS POSSIBILITIES...
From the days of the founding fathers of Rivers State, no one had been in doubt about the potential for greatness that God had bestowed on its land and people. It was also no wonder the ease with which its sobriquet Treasure Base of the Nation was understood and accepted by all. Rivers State covers a land area of 10,387 square kilometres with a population of about 5 million people settled in over 250 communities across mainland and islands. The State is blessed with diverse huge resources and assets which if properly and effectively harnessed and utilized can have a significantly positive impact on the growth of our communities.
The status of Rivers State in terms of its strategic importance and significance to the nation's economy earned it the sobriquet or nickname mentioned earlier. And Port Harcourt, its capital city, became known throughout Nigeria as the Garden City, because of its beautiful layout and topography.
The resources in the State range from human, natural to social resources. The Niger Delta, to which Rivers State is part of, is classified as containing the world’s third largest wetland, with the most extensive freshwater swamp forest and rich biological diversity. Over half of the area is criss-crossed with creeks and dotted with small islands, while the remainder is a lowland rainforest zone (UNDP Niger Delta Human Development Report 2007)
But alas! That seemed to be where our climb to greatness suffered a series of challenges that have stunted our growth into the economic and social greatness that we all had envisioned. Some people have been tempted to even ask what we have to show for the several decades that Rivers State has existed since its creation May 27, 1967 by a Military Decree. The time has come therefore for fresh initiatives to restart our march to greatness as a people and to take the proverbial “destiny in our hands”. The Governor, Rt. Hon Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi also thinks so and has given practical expression to this.
A platform from which sustainable development can be pursued in a professionally planned manner is now in place. This agency set up by law is the Rivers State Sustainable Development Agency under whose auspices, this first ever stakeholders’ conference on sustainable development is taking place. The implication is for empowerment of communities through supports that help them own, develop and implement technically sound programmes and projects into their strategic development plans through professional facilitation.
Why are we so upbeat that this time round things will be different? Simple! We are going back to the time tested model of communal support as we make it possible for our communities to share ideas, opportunities and sustainable technologies to meet the challenges of rural transformation, human capital development and environmental management. With this innovative conference and development solutions exhibition we are allowing communities to see practical results from each other’s efforts in this regard… yes, even encourage healthy competition among our communities over time. Just look at the array of natural resources spread across the length and breadth of the land and you would be motivated to agree with the confidence of Governor Amaechi and his team in Government.
Natural ResourcesTo adequately appreciate the resources in the state, the resource based has been creatively grouped into the natural media of nature: land, water and atmosphere.
Land
Resource |
Usage/Potential Usage |
Crude Oil and Gas |
Diesel, fuel, kerosene, surface active agents, synthetic rubber, nitrogen fertilizers, Pharmaceuticals, Cooking, fertilizer, power generation |
Fresh water |
Domestic use, agriculture, fish production, transportation etc. |
Timber |
Boat making, Construction, industrial usage, conservation, Fuel wood, wild game, food, beverages etc |
Non Timber Products |
Fibres, leaves, dyes, fruits |
Land Animals |
Wild games, conservation, tourism etc |
Soil(Clay, loam, late rite) |
Planting, construction, habitat support etc. |
Farm Products (Cassava, yam, maize, vegetables, cash crops etc) |
Food, industrial usage etc |
Water
Resource |
Usage/Potential Usage |
Crude Oil and Gas |
Diesel, fuel, kerosene, surface active agents, synthetic rubber, nitrogen fertilizers, Pharmaceuticals, Cooking, fertilizer, power generation etc. |
Fresh water |
Domestic usage, agriculture, fish production, transportation, tourism, habitat etc. |
Aquatic Animals(Fish shrimps, crabs) |
Food, games, tourism, conservation |
Sand(Gravel and silica sand) |
Construction, land reclamation, industrial usage(glass making) etc |
Salt Water |
Salt production, food, marine transportation etc. |
Atmosphere
Resource |
Usage/Potential Usage |
Wind |
Energy |
Fresh Air |
Oxygen |
Sunlight |
Energy, photosynthesis, plant production, food processing etc |
Rain |
Food production |
Need we say more? So you see why we know that the possibilities are just endless for Rivers people and the State.