Flooding: FEMA, World Bank Review Preparedness Plans

By: Nkechi Isa

The 2022 devastating floods, which ravaged the country, displacing 1.4 million Nigerians and killing over 600 persons has come under the search light of the World Bank and key stakeholders.

An interactive meeting was organized by the World Bank in conjunction with the FCT Emergency Management Agency, (FEMA), where key stakeholders brainstormed on ways forward.

During the meeting, Acting Director-General of FEMA, Mr. Mohammed Ibrahim Sabo, stressed for the importance of proactive measures rather than reactive in tackling flooding.

He stated that the meeting will enable responders review their response plan in 2022 with a view to improving on their activities.

While noting that most flood disasters in the FCT were human induced, Sabo appealed to residents to always heed to the early warnings put out by FEMA to mitigate the impact of disasters.

Also speaking, the Head of Operations, NEMA Abuja Office, Mr. Justin Uwazuruonye, said the meeting was to review emergency preparedness, recovery and response in 2022, what happened, gaps in the response and how to improve.

In a brief, the Senior Disaster Risk Management Specialist, World Bank, Mr. Nkem Joseph – Palmer, said when disasters happen, communities are the first to be impacted.

His words: “How are we engaging at the community levels and at the Federal level. What are we doing and what can we do better”.

He remarked that the meeting was an assessment exercise for the country to enable the World Bank provide technical expertise and support for emergency responders in the country.

“Template for the survey is based on legal policy, human resources, equipment, early warning and deployment of information technology to respond and improve emergency management frameworks,” Joseph-Palmer reiterated.

He added that the Country lost about 7 trillion naira to the 2022 floods, which amounted to about 41.4 % of its GDP.

The World Bank Senior Disaster Risk Management Specialist emphasized the importance of multi- hazard early warning system in mitigating the impact of flooding in Nigeria.

In a submission, the World Bank consultant, Mr. Al-Hassan Nuhu, said the exercise is a pilot and will be replicated in the 6 geopolitical zones of Nigeria.

The aim of the survey is to assist the World Bank identify areas of assistance to ensure that no live is lost to flooding and that no one is left behind.

Representatives of Local Emergency Management Councils, (LEMC) from AMAC, Gwagwalada, Kwali and Abaji as well as community based Organisations participated in the survey.

The LEMC stated that they lacked basic equipment required for emergencies during heavy floods.

They also lamented the absence of Standard Operating Procedures,(SOPs), and guidelines.