Environment
FG Bemoans Loss To Floods
The Minister of Environment, Mrs. Hadiza Ibrahim Mailafia
has said that lives could be saved and losses minimised if flood alerts were
taken more seriously.
Mrs. Mailafia who stated this shortly after inspecting
flood-ravaged parts of Bauchi, Benue, Jigawa, Kano and Plateau States while
addressing flood victims recently expressed personal anguish and pain of
President Goodluck Jonathan at the suffering the flood has caused the victims.
She expressed Mr. President’s sadness for the loss of loved
ones, all their life savings, possessions and homelessness.
“The monumental losses suffered in many states and the
destruction of lives and property calls for sober reflection.
It calls for review of our strategies and commitments
towards mitigating the devastating effects of climate change” she said.
She said that incidents of recurring flash floods in various
parts of the country, particularly in the North hitherto noted for drought
under underscored the reality of climate change.
The Minister reiterated the need for citizens, particularly
residents of flood prone areas to heed the early warnings of the Ministry on
impending floods and to promptly evacuate so that lives were not avoidably
lost.
She further urged Nigerians not to hesitate in evacuating
their abodes when directed to do so by local authorities.
The Environment boss advised residents against the dumping
of refuse on drainages, gutters and the blockage of canals which aggravates
floods. She advised against building of houses on flood plains or the river
banks and streams, inspite of prohibitions put in place by the town planning
authorities.
She called for the stoppage of tree felling which
contributed to environmental degradation and appealed to people to embrace and
adopt the use of alternative sources of cooking energy such as gas stoves in
order to preserve the country’s forests reserve.
The Minister observed that tree felling was detrimental to
the federal government’s presidential initiative on Afforestation.
She said the aim of the programme was to stem the tide of
desertification and the consequent loss of arable land.
She called on the states that were yet to take advantage of
free seedlings available under the scheme to do so without delay.
The minister appealed to all Nigerians to take environment
issues more seriously and act individually or collectively to protect the
environment.
It would be recalled that the Minister of Environment is
heading a deligation constituted by the federal government last week to visit
flood affected states with a view to assessing the extent of flooding and
damage to take more remedial action.
Members of the committee include, the Minister of Water
Resources, Mrs. Sarah Ochekpe and the Permanent Secretary, Ecological Fund
Office, Dr. Mac John Nwaobiala.
President, Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Mrs Margaret Oguntala, has inaugurated the construction of 18 units residential terrace in highbrow Alausa area of Lagos toward bridging the nation’s shelter gap.
Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation has launched the 1GOV Enterprise Content Management System (ECMS) to enhance digital governance and improve service delivery.
The launch, held on Thursday in Abuja, marks the ministry’s transition from paper-based operations to a smart, integrated and technology-driven work environment.
The Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof. Joseph Utsev, said the deployment aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
Utsev said the system would improve data management, streamline workflows and strengthen transparency and accountability across the ministry.
According to him, the ECMS will enhance productivity, preserve institutional memory and reduce operational costs in the ministry.
Launching the platform, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack, said the initiative is a major step in public sector reform.
She said the ministry’s mandate affects Nigerians through water supply, sanitation, irrigation, river basin development and climate resilience programmes.
Walson-Jack said the 1GOV ECMS enables secure digital records management, automated workflows, electronic approvals and real-time collaboration across MDAs.
She added that the deployment aligns with the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 2021–2025 and the directive for full digitalisation by December 2025.
“Effective governance cannot afford delays caused by manual bottlenecks or avoidable inefficiencies,” she said.
She directed that all official correspondence in the ministry must henceforth be processed through approved digital registry channels.
In her remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Dr Emanso Umobong, said the system would eliminate workflow inefficiencies and improve service delivery.
She urged staff to fully adopt the platform and engage in continuous capacity building.
Research shows that local communities and citizens living at the grassroots, particularly women, are directly impacted by the environmental degradation, flooding and others that result from these manifestations.
In the light of this, non-governmental organisation, Ese Usamali Foundation For Rural Development (EUFORDe), has held a forum for women and other members of oil impacted communities, tagged: ‘Voices from the Grassroots,’ and aimed at building their resilience and mitigation efforts against climate change and environmental degradation
The forum, with the theme: ‘Building Resilience for Oil Spill Impacted Ahoada Communities,’ organised with support from Global Green Grants, was held in Ahoada Community, Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State, on December 5, 2025.
Executive Director of Ese Usamali Foundation For Rural Development, Mercy Elemchukwu-James, said women are at the forefront of efforts to mitigate the impact of climate change and environmental degradation.
The event, therefore, was “designed for community women impacted by oil spills, flooding and other environmental degradation,” she said.
Community women were enlightened by resource persons on new opportunities for sustainable agricultural practices and water management techniques that cushion the impact of oil spills.
Lectures were also delivered on Self-care and Trauma-care, with focus on physical and mental health of the population, and increasing access to health-related resources and services; as well as on Food security and women’s critical role in decision making in oil spill and flood situations in communities
Elemchukwu-James pointed out that the event created a forum for stakeholders, civil society actors and others to dialogue on measures at advancing inclusive and sustainable livelihoods of community women.
She stressed the need for collaborative efforts towards achieving mitigation efforts, while underscoring EUFORDe’s commitment to “fostering partnerships as a critical driver for achieving a healthy community and sustainable development.”
Elemchukwu-James described participants’ design of ‘Community Resilience Plan,’ to manage and combat environmental degradation and crises, as part of achievements recorded at the event.
The forum also witnessed the launching of EUFORDs’ Center For Resilience and Rights.
“This center is established to build resilience as Trauma-Care for victims of environmental degradation, support for survivors of Gender Based Violence (GBV) and a platform where victims of environmental injustice and other GBV cases can seek redress,” Elemchukwu-James said.
Participants celebrated the milestones achieved and charted a path toward greater impact in the coming years. They also described the event as “an inspiring and transformative experience.”
Elemchukwu-James said the awareness creation workshop “reaffirms EUFORDe’s mission to create an equitable society in which the rights and capacities of women, youth, children and underprivileged are integrated in the socio-economic planning and development of communities, for the attainment of equity and peace.