General News
THE National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), has called on residents of Niger and Kwara to adhered to the Seasonal Climate Prediction by the Nigerian Metrological Agency (NiMet) and the Flood Outlook by Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA).
Hajiya Zainab Sai’du, Head, NEMA Minna Operations Office, made the call in a statement to commemorate the 2022 International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction (IDDR) in Minna on Thursday.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the 2022 IDDR focuses on target G of the Sendei Framework to “substantially increase the availability of and access to multi-hazard early warning system and disaster risk information and assessment to people by 2030”.
Sai’du explained that the call becomes necessary to avoid reccurrence of the heavy 2022 flood that ravaged and inundated several communities across the two states.
She added the Seasonal Climate Prediction and the Annual Flood Outlook constitute the flood early warning mechanism to forestall and mitigate flood disaster in the country.
According to her, findings by the agency revealed that many communities affected along the tributaries of river Niger did not heed to the warnings made available by Seasonal Climate Prediction and the Annual Flood Outlook.
She, however, appealed to media organisations to take up the task of disseminating early warning information on disaster as their social responsibility to the people.
Sai’du noted that disaster management was humanitarian activity that “requires all hands to be on deck in order to reduce the occurrence of events and phenomena that leads to the loss of lives and property”.
She said that agency Minna operations office embarks on various sensitisation activities and stakeholders meeting prior to the rainy season to enlighten the people about impending flood every year.
She said that it was disheartening that while some people respond to the flood early warnings usually, many others chose to turn deaf ears to these warnings which had continued to have negative impact on communities in Niger and Kwara.
She added that NEMA, in executing its mandate, would continue to initiate activities that would ensure that early action was taken to reduce losses and reduce disaster to the barest minimum.(NAN)
Tags: Hajiya Zainab Sai’du National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA) Nigerian Metrological Agency (NiMet)
