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By Daniel Adaji
Nigeria has experienced devastating floodings over the years despite recurring government interventions.
Environmental experts agree that the crisis is a direct consequence of institutional failure and mismanagement of resources meant to tackle ecological disasters.
Speaking to Pointblanknews.com on Monday, Philip Jakpor, Executive Director of Renevlyn Development Initiative, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), said the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has remained reactive, focused more on distributing relief items than preventing disasters.
He also criticized NEMA for lacking the capacity and equipment to respond effectively to flood emergencies, despite repeated warnings and forecasts from the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NIMET).
“NIMET must be given kudos for the real-time early warning system they have in place. It is the responsibility of NEMA, working in partnership with the State Emergency Management Agencies (SEMAs), to deploy measures to ensure disasters are nipped or mitigated. That is where we are failing as a nation.
“We do not hear of them buying helicopters or speedboats or working with state governments to set up more formal camps where displaced persons would ideally be relocated to. Instead, what you hear once the flood disasters occur is that they are distributing palliatives, especially rice,” Jakpor said.
He also blamed state governments for shirking responsibility while demanding ecological funds from the federal government.
“The state governments are more interested in requesting ecological funds even when some of the disasters are things they could manage without the federal government. This is why the flooding incidents continue to claim lives, lead to loss of livelihoods, and disrupt economic activities. It is shameful and disturbing that every year we see the same thing and say the same thing,” he said.
Established in 1981, Nigeria’s Ecological Fund was designed as a financial buffer to address environmental challenges like erosion, desertification, drought, and flooding. Over the years, the fund’s legal framework has evolved, with key amendments made in 1984, 1992, and most notably in 2002, when President Olusegun Obasanjo ordered a restructuring in response to a Supreme Court ruling.
The Fund is currently financed through a two percent allocation from the Federation Account and is shared among federal, state, and local governments. Between 2012 and 2016 alone, it received N276bn from the Federal Allocation Account Committee (FAAC). The 36 states got N39.62bn as ecological funds between June 2023 and June 2024. Additional N6,03bn was disbursed in February, 2025.
He added that while climate change is undeniably a global reality, “the human management of the incidents is where there is a clear disconnect.”
Also speaking with Pointblanknews.com, Nnimmo Bassey, Director of Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), said the catastrophic floods of 2024 that displaced over 641,000 Nigerians and left 285 dead exposed the fragility of the nation’s infrastructure and the urgent need for climate-responsive governance.
“The 2024 flood was a wake-up call for Nigeria. Our emergency preparedness and response systems must be upgraded to ensure that communities are not helpless during floods and other climate-related disasters,” he said.
Bassey warned that persistent flooding is not an isolated problem but a consequence of broader vulnerability and a lack of preparedness for a much larger crisis: climate change.
“That larger crisis is climate change, a phenomenon that is certain to cause more disasters as the world largely prefers to avoid action,” he stated.
He emphasised that poorly constructed infrastructure, ineffective drainage systems, and weak policies continue to compound the impacts of extreme weather events. He cited inappropriate construction practices, such as using rigid reinforced concrete on major highways, as contributing to the problem.
“As we have more intense rains, poor drainage systems and poorly constructed and managed infrastructure will continue to be inadequate to handle the problem. The production of cement involves intensive energy use and is a major contributor to greenhouse gases,” he said.
He noted that such materials are incompatible with climate-resilient planning.
He added that, beyond urban infrastructure, dam safety remains a serious concern, calling for ecosystem-based solutions, including the restoration of wetlands, forests, and mangroves, which serve as natural defenses against flooding.
“We must ensure that our dams are structurally sound and those that have been left uncompleted are urgently completed. Sadly, poorly managed dams have triggered or compounded flood disasters in Nigeria.
“Mangrove restoration may be the new buzzword, but it is for good reason. Mangroves help to halt coastal erosion and are excellent carbon sinks. Besides, they provide multiple economic opportunities for coastal communities,” he added.
Bassey called for proper flood-risk mapping and land-use planning that draws on local knowledge. He also condemned land reclamation in coastal zones and highlighted the impact of single-use plastics on drainage systems.
“For flood-prone coastal communities, local norms and knowledge of waterways can be systematized to help determine which zones should be built on and which can be used for other activities. Single-use plastics also constitute a problem as they clog our waterways and drainage channels,” he said.
Bassey stressed the need for government leadership in community-based resilience. “Government needs to promote community resilience and support community-based initiatives that enhance flood prevention, such as flood-risk mapping, early warning systems, and flood evacuation drills.
“Government should go beyond announcing floods and adequately protect the people and their properties. Climate change is a pressing national security issue that demands immediate attention,” he said.
According to a government document titled “Nigeria: Post Disaster Needs Assessment—Floods in 2012,” “Heavy rains between July and October 2012 with rising water levels resulting from the runoff contributed to the flooding of human settlements located downstream of the Kainji, Shiroro, and Jebba dams on the Niger River; the Lagdo dam in Cameroon on the Benue River; the Kiri dam on the Gongola River; and several other irrigation dams. In some cases, the dams were damaged; in others, water had to be released at full force to avert an overflow.”
Nigeria reportedly suffered its worst flood disaster in 40 years in 2012 when over two million people were displaced with the loss of at least 363 lives. Records by the National Emergency Management Agency revealed that 5,851 people were injured, 3,891,314 were affected, and 3,871,53 were displaced.
The floods affected 30 of the 36 states and caused an estimated N2.6tn in damages. The flooding continued in 2015, affecting about one million people and resulting in 53 confirmed deaths with poor government intervention.
Additionally, localized flooding in 2016 displaced about 92,000 people and claimed 38 lives, mostly in Northeast Nigeria. In 2017, over 100,000 people were displaced in Benue State after the River Benue overflowed.
About 62,000 people were displaced due to flooding in 2020 tied to a wider Sahel regional pattern. Two years later, in 2022, about 1.4 million people were displaced and around 612 lives were lost, partly due to heavy rainfall and the release of water from the Lagdo Dam in Cameroon.
NEMA stated in a report that 33,983 people nationwide were affected by the 2023 flood, while a December 2023 report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) found that the flood cost $9bn USD in economic damage. 625,000 people were displaced, and at least 259 died in floods that affected 29 states in 2024. This period saw so many lives lost in states like Borno.
A recent torrential flood in May 2025 displaced over 3,000, destroyed critical infrastructure, and resulted in the loss of more than 150 people’s lives in Mokwa town, Niger State.
The Annual Flood Outlook for 2025 indicated that 1,249 communities in 176 local government areas in 33 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) fall within the high flood risk areas, while 2,187 communities in 293 local government areas in 31 states of the federation, including the FCT, fall within the moderate flood risk areas.
The states highly at risk, according to the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA), are Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Federal Capital Territory, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, and Zamfara.
Over the years, successive governments have spent heavily in response to flooding.
In 2012, former President Goodluck Jonathan announced a N17.6bn for immediate relief and rehabilitation.
During the 2022 and 2024 floods, federal and state agencies distributed food, medicine, temporary shelters, and water purification systems.
The federal government in the 2025 budget allocated N6bn to flood and erosion control, with targeted allocations for flood-prone states like Niger, Bayelsa, and Akwa Ibom.
When contacted, the spokesperson for NEMA, Mr. Manzo Ezekiel did not respond to enquiry by our corresponde