Momoh Umar Momoh, Benin
As part of its strategy to address flood risks and related hazards, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has commenced the 2025 National Preparedness and Response Campaign (NPRC) in Edo State.
The agency which called for collaboration from the government, private sector, media and citizens, highlighted the devastating impacts of annual floods in Nigeria.
Mrs Zubaida Umar, NEMA’s Director General, who flagged off the campaign during a stakeholders engagement held in Benin City, noted that recent floods have resulted in loss of lives, livelihoods, and infrastructure, costing billions of naira in damages.
Umar represented by the Head of Operations, Benin Office, Mr Kenoma Ojuedere, said Nigerians have suffered injuries and lost life savings due to unmitigated flood incidents and associated secondary hazards annually.
She added that NEMA developed the 2025 Climate-Related Risk Management Implications, Preparedness, and Mitigation Actions based on NIMET-NIHSA predictions to guide response efforts.
She referenced the 2025 Seasonal Climate Prediction (SCP) and Annual Flood Outlook (AFO) by NIMET and NIHSA, providing insights into rainfall patterns and flood scenarios.
“As part of its flood early warning system, NEMA identified disaster risk management implications and mitigation strategies for communication to communities at risk during the rainy season,” she said.
She, however, called on public and private institutions, humanitarian NGOs, school children, and youth organizations to leverage early warning tools to support NEMA’s efforts.
“Oure identified disaster risk management implications include delayed onset of rains, earlier cessation, shorter growing seasons, above-normal rainfall, and severe dry spells.
“These implications are expected to impact sectors such as disaster management, healthcare, agriculture, transportation, energy, telecommunications, water supply, power generation, education, security, and the environment.
“Consequently, NEMA developed disaster mitigation strategies, including capacity building for local responders, simulation exercises, rainwater harvesting, and adherence to predicted rainfall onset before planting.
“Other strategies involve irrigation as an alternative water source for agriculture, livestock vaccination, effective contingency prepositioning of basic family needs, and risk transfer where necessary.
“Additional measures include desilting of drainages and natural waterways, integrity tests for critical infrastructure, developing evacuation plans, strengthening community-based information sharing, and increased safety surveillance,” she added.
She posited explained that beyond the stakeholders’ engagement, NEMA teams would visit communities at risk of floods to interact with people and disseminate early warning messages with the support of SEMAs and volunteers.
The NEMA boss also called on partners at the meeting to support the agency’s initiative of taking early warning messages to the people to safeguard against past experiences where the rainy season became a moment of adversity.
She emphasised the importance of traditional institutions, religious organizations, women, youth groups, and the media in this regard.
Also speaking, Mr Jerry Idahosa, the Executive Secretary, Edo State Emergency Management Agency (EdoSEMA), thanked the DG of NEMA for choosing Edo State as a focal point for Phase two of the nationwide campaign.
According to him, your presence here today reaffirms our shared commitment to a resilient, proactive, and people-centered disaster management framework.
