Oyo dredges eight flood-prone rivers, streams to curb flooding

The Oyo state government has dredged eight additional flood-prone rivers and streams across all geopolitical zones in the state.

The government said this was done to reduce risk of flooding.

Abdulmojeed Mogbonjubola, commissioner for environment and natural resources, led a team of government officials on an assessment tour of the dredged rivers.

The commissioner, who was represented by Oladipo Mukaila, director of environmental engineering, said the visitation was crucial to ascertain the level of work on the projects.

He affirmed the state’s preparedness to prevent a recurrence of the fluvial flooding this year.

The Nigeria Hydrological Service Agency (NIHSA) and Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET), in the Annual Flow Outlook (AFO), predicted that some states across the federation would experience fluvial flooding this year.

The commissioner stated that the newly dredged rivers and streams include: Araromi river, Boroboro river, Isunwin stream in Oyo town, ‘Ora/Laka’ river in Ogbomoso, ‘Jalugbe’ Stream in Ilero, and Telebu-Ayin-Opaleki River in Igboora.

Others include Ogba stream, Iseyin; Koba Stream, Ogboro Road, Saki; and Fedomu river Igbeti in Oke-ogun area of Oyo State.

The team, which included officers from the ministry of environment, office of the auditor-general of the state and bureau of public procurement, was satisfied with the volume of work done to prevent flooding and the attendant loss of lives.