Ahead of the 2024 rainy season, Plateau Environmental Protection and Sanitation Agency (PEPSA), has kick starting gutter clearing within Jos and Bukuru metropolis to mitigates flooding.

Director General of PEPSA, Samuel Dapiya, revealed there were 115 major drainages across Jos and Bukuru metropolis as the agency engaged about 120 community youths in executing the task.

Our correspondent learned that the flag off which held at ECWA Goodness, Ahmadu Bello way Jos on Saturday, also coincided with world zero waste day anniversary.

He warned Plateau residents against indiscriminate dumping of waste which is tantamount to healthy environment.

We're here at Ahmadu Bello way in front of ECWA Goodnews church to begin distillation of our gutters and drainages before the 2024 rain set in. And this project is very, very important because we're trying to make Plateau very safe, clean for Plateau people and also to mitigate the issue of flooding. And part of why we're here also is to show Plateau people that we can own this process.

"Government is a limited resource, as I always say, government cannot distill all the gutters. We can do the major drainages and we have about 115 distance of drainage in total.And as you can see, we have over 120 youths that engage in this community project.

"And part of the plan is to ensure that for each community, we drag the community members, most especially the young people within those communities, since they are part of those responsible for generating waste."

Applauding the initiative, General Manager Jos Metropolitan Development Board, JMDB, Arch.Hart Bankat, maintained they are into inter agency collaboration not competition.

"We believe that by the time they are able to do this, it's going to decongest the town and it's going to ease the flow of water.When the rainy season setting and the issues of flow we are anticipating, we hope that by the special grace of God, will be controlled by proper drainages.

"As much as the  dirty are there and the waste is there to be evacuated, it is also our responsibility to make sure we don't dump them wrongly.And if each of us takes responsibility just to clear the drainages in front of our own residences, businesses, and then areas we occupy is going to go a long way in reducing all this."