Environment
Flooding: Experts Task States On Preventive Measures
Environmental experts have advised state governments to put up measures to forestall negative impact of flooding ahead of rainy seasons in the future.
The environmentalists said that the reactionary measures put up by states at the thick of flooding incidents had not paid off as flooding causalities across the states had increased.
They gave the advice while speaking with newsmen in Lagos, against the backdrop of warnings of heavier rainfall in 2020 by the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NHISA).
NHISA had earlier advised states to avoid fire brigade approach to flooding.
Toyin Oshaniwa, the Executive Director, Nature Care Resource Centre, (NCRC) Lagos, said: “flooding will always present a problem to many states across the nation due to both natural and man-made factors.
“Lagos state by virtue of its low lying landscape is highly prone to flooding.
“It is therefore essential for every state and stakeholders to act and take proactive measures in reducing the impacts of flooding in 2020.
“The strategy for 2020 flood management across states should be built on Private-Public Partnership, especially in the areas of restoration of urban storm water lines.
“This can be achieved through the construction and reclamation of canals and anti-drainage barriers,” he said.
He added that practicing flood prevention when flooding already occurred should be discarded saying it only amounted to window dressing with no positive bearing on the victims.
Similarly, Mr Ane Leslie-Adogame, of Sustainable Research and Action for Environmental Development (SRADev Nigeria), said that states should prioritise the issue of flooding.
Leslie-Adogame, listed pragmatic steps towards checking flooding to include: structural and non-structural approaches for effective flood risk assessment, management and adaptation.
He said that there was urgent need to strengthen flood disaster early warnings and advocacy mechanisms both at states and local levels in addition to the need for proactive measures to maintain drainage channels regularly.
“States or locations without drainage infrastructure should be given due attention, thus construction or upgrading of drainage channels.
“There should be a strong policy towards indiscriminate dumping of refuse and obstruction of drainage channels.
“There should be continuous cleaning and de-silting of primary and secondary canals across the state to allow free flow of storm water and evacuation of traders on drainage channels.
“There should be a clear budgetary provision for flood management in states.
“State governments should commission urgent urban flood vulnerability mapping, to aid proper flood disaster planning systems,” he said.
Ms Omobola Eko, Convener Urban Tree Revival Team (UTRT), said that the culture of tree planting and maintenance of forest buffer zones would aid the flood prevention campaign.
She said that states should raise awareness on the importance of wetlands through knowledge products.
NAN reports that many states were devastated by the seasonal flooding that occurred in 2012, and subsequent years since then.
The prediction by the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) had predicted that the onset of the rainy season in the southern part of Nigeria would begin from Feb. 24 while in the North the earliest would be by June 22.
The rainfall would begin to cease from the North going by the prediction from Sept. 26 downwards to the South by December 28.
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.
