Nigeria is facing a worsening flood situation as heavy rains have caused rivers to overflow and submerged many communities across the country. According to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), floods have affected Ekiti, Lagos, Adamawa, 17 other states, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), claiming the lives of five people and displacing thousands of others.
The agency organised a National Emergency Coordination Forum in Abuja to discuss the humanitarian challenges posed by the floods and to find ways to mitigate their impacts on citizens.
The forum was attended by various stakeholders, including the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA), which presented the 2023 Annual Flood Outlook (AFO) in February.
The AFO predicted that 178 local government areas (LGAs) in 32 states and the FCT would fall within the high flood risk areas, while 224 LGAs would fall within the moderate flood risk areas, and the remaining 372 LGAs would fall within the low flood risk areas.
The AFO also warned of possible flooding along major river basins, such as Niger, Benue, Sokoto-Rima, Anambra-Imo, Cross River, Niger Delta, Komadugu-Yobe, Ogun-Osun, and Hadejia-Jama’are.
The Director-General of NIHSA, Clement Nze, said that the AFO projections had been confirmed by the current flood situation in Nigeria. He said that not less than 20 states and the FCT had experienced one degree of flooding or the other with over 46 LGAs affected. He listed some of the affected states and LGAs as follows:
- Anambra (Onitsha North, Orumba North)
- Adamawa (Yola North, Machika, Madagali)
- Abia (Aba South)
- Akwa Ibom (Uyo)
- Edo (Benin)
- Benue (Makurdi)
- Borno (Bama, Mobbar)
- Delta (Oshimili South, Warri)
- Ekiti (Ikole)
- Imo (Owerri)
- Kwara (Oke-Ero, Moro)
- Lagos (Agege, Ikorodu, Lagos Island, Ikeja, Alimosho, Kosofe, Ajeromi-Ifelodun)
- Ogun (Ota, Yewa North, Yewa South)
- Ondo (Akure North, Ifedore, Odigbo)
- Oyo (Ido, Ibadan)
- Niger (Mokwa, Lapai, Katchia, Lavun, Rijau, Magama, Gbako, Bosso, Mariga, Kontogora)
- Rivers (Oyigbo West)
- Taraba (Jalingo)
- FCT (AMAC, Kuje, Gwagwalada, Bwari, Kwali)
Nze also recalled some of the tragic incidents caused by the floods in some parts of the country. He said that in the FCT, several communities like Lugbe (Trademoore Estate) had experienced flooding where over four people died and more than 116 houses were submerged. He also mentioned other flood affected areas in the FCT such as Jedo, Lokogoma, Kubwa and Galadimawa.
He added that between April and June 2023, about 23 LGAs had experienced some degrees of flood-related disasters. He said that in July alone 2023 more than 11 LGAs had experienced some flood disasters.
The Director-General of NEMA Mustapha Habib expressed his concern over the flood situation in Nigeria. He said that coordination was a vital component of disaster management that should be given adequate attention. He also reminded the participants of the forum that the 2022 flood disaster had claimed 665 lives displaced 2.4 million people and affected 4.5 million people.
He urged all stakeholders to work together to address the flood situation and other disasters in Nigeria. He said that NEMA was ready to provide humanitarian assistance to the affected people and communities.
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