The intervention by the federal government through the Ministries of Mines and Steel Development, Environment and Health to help in the alleviation of the Lead poisoning incidence in 2009/2010 has been described by stakeholders as commendable. RUTH TENE NATSA writes on the far reaching effects of the intervention.
When in 2010, Zamfara State was in the news for the alleged deaths of over 400 and over 1,000 brain-damaged children exposed to lead poisoning which occurred as a result of illegal mining activities, the cry for government’s intervention was endless and yet almost impossible.
Several communities including Angwan Yangalma, Abare, Dareta and Bagega among others were said to have been affected by the incident for which the Zamfara State government requested for the sum of N850 million to help in the treatment, remediation and awareness creation for the communities.
After almost three years, the federal government’s intervention fund was released. Though many grumbled that the intervention took too long in coming and caused more deaths, it was agreed that governments effort is not wasted. The funds were released in three folds to the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Health. The funds, according to stakeholders, were for the treatment of victims, remediation purposes (clearing the poisoned surface and replacing it with clean earth) to avoid recontamination of already poisoned areas and awareness creation for safer mining as well as providing needed equipment and gadgets for safer mining.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with LEADERSHIP, Mr John (surname withheld), who was part of the good governance tour to Zamfara State, described the efforts by the federal government as ‘most commendable,’ recalling that previous visits met with a lackadaisical attitude from both the government and the indigenes to the incident and the plights of victims. “I was most impressed seeing the present efforts as it showed that the government was on its feet in the fight against lead poisoning,” he said.
John, who said he had been following the incident since June 2012, with a second visit to the state in September and a much recent visit in March, stated that much progress had been made.
Meanwhile, the humanitarian and health organisation which has been responsible for the treatment of victims since the incident, the Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), Doctors Without Borders, said it had finally commenced medical treatment of over 34 children suffering from lead poisoning in Bagega village, Zamfara State.
A statement made available to LEADERSHIP recently, signed by the MSF Country Representative to Nigeria, Simon Tyler, revealed: “In the first of four groups to receive medical care, MSF had started 34 children on specialised chelation therapy to remove the lead from their blood and will further monitor 126 children.”
The organisation maintained that the treatment was just the beginning as it could not treat children from the remaining three groups until the lead was successfully removed from their homes, adding that acute lead poisoning in children could cause severe brain damage and death.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Environment, Hajia Hadiza Mailafia, while explaining the remediation process to the good governance tour team in Zamfara State recently, revealed that the work to be done included the sequential and mechanical removal of exposed surfaces which are scientifically and safely replaced with new sand or cement materials at a total cost of N800 million fully borne by the federal government of Nigeria.
Mailafia stated that after the completion of all remediation activities in June 2013, the federal ministry of health would move into the site to render further medical intervention for victims of the lead poisoning. Also the minister disclosed that the project had generated employment in the offices of crew managers, supervisors, unskilled youths from Bagega Village as well as other capacity building opportunities for 87 staff of the Zamfara State Ministry of Environment, its agency, Zamfara Environmental Sanitation Agency (ZESA) and various staff of the federal ministry of environment.
The director, Artisanal and Small Scale Mining (ASM), Ministry of Mines and Steel Development and chairman, Safer Mining Projects, Obiorah Azubuike, also revealed that the safer mining programme would bring in wet milling machines to be installed in three centres in Zamfara State, adding that the machines had already been ordered and should be in the country soon. He also stated that campaigns were on to create awareness on safer mining and to formalise the activities of illegal miners by forming them into cooperatives to ensure that they did their mining in accordance with the Minerals and Mining Act.
Source :#Leadership
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