Nigeria lost N2.6t to 2012 flood disaster – NEMA

Alhaji Mohammad Sani-Sidi, the Director General, National Emergency Management Agency, on Wednesday in Abuja said the country lost N2.6 trillion to the 2012 flood disaster.
Sani-Sidi was speaking while presenting the 2012 Flood Post Disaster Need Assessments and Disaster Risk Management to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim.
He said that the loss was recorded in the education, health, housing, agricultural, commerce, oil, industry, water, sanitation, transport, electricity and environment sectors.
He added that the housing sector recorded the highest damaged followed by agriculture.
He told the SGF that the agency had taken a number of pre-flood actions, proactive measures and post-flood response measures to address the 2012 flood disaster.
Sani-Sidi added: “NEMA, with the support of development partners, led the process of the PDNA and undertook a number of post-PDNA Operationalisation Committee.
“The partners oversaw development and validation of the 2012 National Flood Recovery Action Plan and a National Disaster Recovery Strategy and Framework.”
He added that NEMA would be developing a national integrated flood warning system and linking warning to preparedness, response and recovery.
Sani-Sidi suggested that to ensure effective response and recovery from future flood disasters, humanitarian coordination should be strengthened.
He said that NEMA should also be empowered to effectively play its role in disaster management.
Responding, Anyim said that the Federal Government would do its best to implement the recommendations of the report.
He said: “Today, we can say that we have an acceptable document across the globe and Nigerian Post Disaster Need Assessment 2012 flood conduct and outcomes.
“The document also could have put areas where partners can indeed complement the local effort to ensure that necessary strategies are put in place for managing future disaster.”
Anyim said that government was committed to ensuring that measures were put in place to avert future occurrences and to minimise the impact when they occur.