The Oyo State Commissioner for Environment, Mr Abdulmojeed Mogbojubola, has underscored the need for the youth to use Geographic Information System (GIS) technology to solve environmental problems.
Mogbonjubola stated this in Ibadan on Tuesday while receiving an award for exceptional leadership, innovation, and transformative contributions to society from the Geoinformation Society of Nigeria (GEOSON) Oyo State Chapter.
The award was given at the annual general meeting of the society.
While appreciating the association, the commissioner said Oyo State had been making notable efforts to address some of the challenges in combating the environment.
He said everything was about the environment, and by influencing the environment through human actions, corresponding responses would be obtained, urging youths to take advantage of GIS technology.
“There is an instrument we have right now in Oyo State that is nowhere in Africa; it is called the Early Warning Instrument that could predict flooding, tell the flood level and all that.
“We were looking for someone to manage it, but we could only get three out of six people with the required knowledge.
“We actually have to pick from other ministries to join them to acquire the training worth N3 million,” Mogbonjubola said.
Another recipient of the award, Mr Olasunkanmi Sokeye, an engineer and project coordinator at the Ibadan Urban Flood Management Project (IUFMP), said the state government, in partnership with the World Bank, would commence construction of seven bridges to mitigate flooding incidence in the state.
Sokeye said the project would kick off as soon as the rain cessation forecast for Nov. 5 commenced.
He urged residents of the state to be patient as the project would bring about some hardship, which could be aggravated by impatience as there would be provision of alternative routes to ease the difficulties.
He stated that the project would last for six months, urging residents to desist from acts that damage the environment and pose a danger to lives and property.
According to him, some of the areas for the construction of the bridges are Ago Tailor, Odo Ona; Oluyole, Rhema area; Akala Express, Agara area; Odo Ona Kekere, Old Ijebu Road, Orogun; and Ona Ara, Ariyo area.
“Two factors are basically responsible for flooding in Ibadan; number one is the indiscriminate dumping of solid waste in the river. It accounts for 70 per cent of the flooding incidents.
“The second is the issue of indiscriminate development of flood plains; you will see people build houses up to the river edges; that is not how it supposed to be,” Sokeye said.
Earlier in his address, the Chairman of GEOSON, Oyo State Chapter, Chief Musa Adetoro said what distinguishes GIS from other information systems is how spatial data has been organised, displayed, and interpreted for location intelligence.
According to him, the multidisciplinary application and usage of GIS transcends professional barriers because location intelligence is required for accurate scientific investigation, resource management, development planning, public health, smart agriculture, and other everyday solution requirements of our world.
“I, therefore, encourage all professionals, academics, and government officials present today to collaborate and come under the umbrella of the Geoinformation Society of Nigeria (GEOSON).
“We are positioned to support and enhance your professional capacity and performance,” Adetoro said.
Others who were recipients of GEOSON’s Innovation and Leadership Impact Award include Alh. Lamidi Abiodun, Oyo State Chairman, Nigerian Institution of Surveyors; Dr Adediji Akanji, Chief Executive Officer of Geotechnics Services Ltd; and Mr Olufemi Akintola, Surveyor General of Oyo State, 1999–2015, among others.
