NEMA Partners with Kano to Avert Flood in 23 LGAs

Ahmad Sorondinki in Kano

Kano State Government has introduced measures to work closely with the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to downscale the risk of flooding in 23 local government areas predicted to be affected by flood disasters in 2023.

The Director-General of the agency, Mustapha Ahmad, made the disclosure while flagging off the ‘Downscaling of Disaster Early Warning Measures to Grassroots for Effective Life-Saving Early Actions during 2023 Rainy Season’, yesterday in Kano.

Ahmad said the existence of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) in all the 44 local government areas of the state would enable NEMA to work closely with them to further downscale flood early warning systems to the grassroots.

He said: “This initiative will enable them make appropriate plans that can save lives, livelihoods, critical national assets and the natural ecosystem which is the bedrock for sustainable development.

“The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) and the Nigerian Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA) have released their 2023 Seasonal Climate Prediction (SCP) and Annual Flood Outlook (AFO) of high probability of flooding across the country during the year to safeguard our national food security and engender sustainable socio-economic growth in Kano State.”

Ahmad added: “We have decided to support sub-national level actors, including states, local governments, and communities to take ownership of their responsibility of disaster preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery.

 “In 2022, Nigeria experienced the most devastating flood disaster with more than four million people affected, over two million persons displaced, 665 deaths, 355,986 houses, and 944,989 hectares of farmlands destroyed. We must, therefore, strive to support our Local Emergency Management Committees (LEMCs) with adequate capacity building, funding, and equipment to take disaster risk management to the communities to be able to build safe and resilient communities, and by extension, a safer and resilient Nigeria.”

Speaking also, the state Governor, Abba Kabir-Yusuf, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Dr. Abdullahi Bappa-Bichi, said the state was removing all structures built along waterways.

According to him, “We are working round the clock to ensure that all illegal structures and illegal drainages erected on waterways are removed to allow free flow of water to prevent flood across Kano State.”

He further explained that Kano State, with an estimated population of over 25 million residents, produces more than 4,000 tons of waste on a daily basis.