Nigeria, Feb. 9 -- That is the question. Perhaps we should first take a look at Lake Chad and Mai Mala Buni, the governor of Yobe State and current chairman of the Lake Chad Basin Governors' Forum.

The Lake Chad Basin is an area of about 2,434,000 square kilometres (940,000 square miles), roughly 8 per cent of Africa. It includes parts of Cameroon, Chad, Nigeria, and Niger and is fed by the Chari, Logone, and Yobe Rivers.

There are around 30 million inhabitants and over 70 ethnic groups, with their primary sources of livelihood being farming, fishing, and animal husbandry. The lakeside is rich in reeds and swamps, while the plains along the lake are fertile, making it an important area for irrigated agriculture. The lake is abundant in ...