The Sahara in its entirety is bordered on the south by the beautiful desert city of Agadez. Casting a retrospective glance at the past, I see Agadez in the kaleidoscope of my mind's eye as a mosaic of bitter-sweet experiences, entwined with a combination of beauty and sublime horror.

It would surprise you to know that Agadez in the past under the influence of the French, this region was always considered as the line of Rubicon as soldiers consciously or unconsciously realize that there may be no return from battle.

But one cannot fail to acknowledge the fact that crossers of the desert like me are always overcome with an overwhelming sense of nostalgia when the name Agadez is mentioned. I have always hoped that one day Agadez will be the beginning of the south-west passage of the Trans-Saharan Highway.

One thing remains certain, it will the journey of a life time

Soil Engineer Dr. Newton Chukwukadibia Jibunoh has been a trailblazer for desertification and greening of the Earth for many decades. Just after his University education in the late 60s and at a time when the entire world was undergoing great socio- political and cultural changes for the better; thanks to the effort of young people; Newton Jibunoh sought out challenges in which to make his own contributions towards creating a better world. He chose the rare and daring challenge of a solo expenditure of driving across the Sahara desert in 1996. Predictably, this became a life-changing experience and the inspiration for his now internationally-remarkable achievements in expedition and greening Earth.

Thirty-three years later in 1999, Dr. Newton Jibunoh decided on his second Sahara desert expedition; this time travelling in the reverse direction from Nigeria to Europe. The motivation behind this second desert expedition was to bring to the world's attention the plight of the millions of people in Africa affected by the fast-encroaching Sahara desert. After his second Sahara expedition, Dr. Jibunoh founded FADE-Fight Against Desert Encroachment, an  International Non-Governmental Organisation. NGO accredited to the United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development.

Dr. Jibunoh's 3rd Sahara Expedition

With desert expedition now very much his blood and life, Dr. Jibunoh decided at age 70, to embark on his third Sahara desert expedition; but this time not as a solo expedition. In his third expedition in 2008 which he described as the 'Passing The Torch Expedition' he decided to travel with three 4 x 4 Suzuki jeeps and five other new expeditioners to be groomed and trained as Desert Warriors. In all, there were four male and two female 'warriors' who traveled from Nigeria through twelve countries and the Sahara desert to England from March 8th to April 12th, 2008. Deservedly, Jibunoh's 3rd Sahara desert expedition in 2008 generated a lot of local and international interest and publicity in the prominent print media, Radio and Television including CNN.