Should Lake Chad be blamed for terrorism?

Growing up, many children in Africa are taught in school about Lake Chad and its immense importance to Africa and the world thereby.

Many children then hope to one day see the great lake with their own eyes by visiting it.

Sadly, the lake which was an inspiration for many is now being blamed for several ills which surprisingly include terrorism.

Is it that Lake Chad is training terrorists? Is that possible? Of course it isn’t. And if it’s drying up and that’s allegedly leading to conflicts among those who interact most with it, is that its fault? Of course it isn’t.

Well, it seems Africa’s clueless leaders are now blaming the innocent lake for Boko Haram terrorists as against their own refusal to plan well for the future.

And while they continue to play the senseless blame game, instead of solving the problem, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has warned that thousands of internally displaced persons being sheltered in various camps in the region of the Lake Chad Basin lack adequate accommodation, food, water and sanitation.

And that the humanitarian situation in the Lake Chad Basin is constantly worsening as about 10 million people living there are in need of humanitarian assistance.

Located in Northern Central Africa, Lake Chad borders four countries: Chad, Nigeria, Niger and Cameroon. But the Lake Chad Basin that covers almost 8% of the continent spreads over seven countries: Algeria, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Libya, Niger and Nigeria.

That the lake, once one of Africa’s largest freshwater bodies and a source of livelihood for about 30 million, is vanishing fast is no longer breaking news.

Its water body has diminished by 90% since the 60s due to overuse and climate change effects.

A military joint multinational task force made up of troops from Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon, Chad and Benin are battling terrorists on several fronts around it just as farmers and herdsmen continue to engage in violent conflict over its available water and pasture.

The impression being given is that the lake’s drying up, which exacerbating poverty in its region, is what’s responsible for the terrorists found around it, the acts of terror they unleash on the communities around it and the farmers-herdsmen conflicts.

This just can’t be the case, though.

A lake drying up cannot, shouldn’t be blamed for whatever consequences its drying leads to.

The government or governments in charge of it should be blamed instead.