PLANTATION OF JATROPHA AS A PANACEA TO DESERTIFICATION AND IMPROVED LIVELIHOOD OF THE RURAL POPULATION THROUGH THE PROMOTION OF THE USE AND APPLICATION OF JATROPHA OIL AS A PRIME SOURCE OF RENEWABLE ENERGY.

The promotion of Jatropha plantation as a means of economic empowerment,social upliftment and poverty alleviation within the marginalised communities of the arid north of Nigeria. Jatropha is available multipuporse plantation to ameliorate soil degradation,desertification, and deforestation which can be used as an alternative energy to replace petrol -diesel for a sustainable production and climatic protection. We are embracing this project as an excellent real sustainable development because the biodiesel is a domestically produced; it is a renewable fuel that can be manufactured from vegetable oils, animal fats, or recycled restaurant greases. It reduces pollution by up to 75%. Biodiesel offers safety benefits over petroleum diesel because it is less much less combustible, with a flash point greater than 150 degree celsius. compared to 77 degree celsius of petroleum diesel. It is the most easily made alternative fuel. That is why we like it the best and support home production of biodiesel. Northern Nigeria occupies a land mass of 600,000 square kilometers which is equivalent to 60,000,000 hectares of land. If only 10%of this land mass is qualtivated with jatropha for the purpose of biodiesel production the sum of nabout $3 billion will be realised which is equivalent to 400 billion naira, which is almost the annual revenue allocation to all the 19 Northern states from the federation account. The N.G.O is currently undertaking the plantation of jatropha in eleven front lines states of Northern Nigeria. These states are Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara, Katsina, Kano, Jigawa, Bauchi, Yobe, Borno, Adamawa and Gombe.These are states bordering the sahara desert. The traditional rulers have been sensitized and they gladly agreed to work with us in the area of mass mobilization and public awareness for the success of the project. A letter hereby enclosed by His Eminence Alhaji (Dr) Muhammadu Maccido (CFR) the Sultan of Sokoto, chairman of the traditional council of Northern Nigeria. The project is supported by the federal (through ministries of Environment, Agriculture, Finance, Nigerian National petroleum Corporation {N.N.P.C}, Ecological Funds), states and Local Governments, donour countries and organizations, and also through carbon finance under the Clean Development Mechanism (C.D.M) of the Kyoto Protocol. BENEFIT OF THE JATROPHA PROJECT 1. Wasteland reclamation and reforestation. 2. Income generation. 3. Creating employment 4. The states concerned will also benefit from the increase demand for employment, infrastructure, logistics, transportation.

SEE THE LETTER BELOW REGARDING LAND ALLOCATION ESPECIALLY FOR THE CULTIVATION OF JATROPHA.