NEMA Urges More Stakeholders’ Action For Disaster Management

The Director-General of the National Emergency Management
Agency (NEMA), Alhaji Mohammed Sani-Sidi, on Thursday in Abuja called for more
efforts by stakeholders to check large-scale disasters in the country.

Sani-Sidi made the call at an event organised by NEMA to
commemorate the 2012 UN World Humanitarian Day.

The director-general stressed the need for strategies to
check large scale disasters such as floods, epidemics, drought, desertification
and the resultant bio-diversity loss.

He commended the stakeholders in disaster management for
their continued collaboration and support for all NEMA’s activities.

“I wish to call upon you to use your talents and experiences
gained over the years to develop tools for effective humanitarian service
delivery that does not compromise the safety and wellbeing of such service
providers,’’ he said.

In a goodwill message, the Director-General of the Nigerian
Metrological Agency, Dr Anthony Anuforom, warned that the latest forecast by the
agency indicated that more people would be vulnerable to the impending flood.

The DG, who said that the agency had provided NEMA with the
necessary information on the vulnerable areas, commended efforts being made by
NEMA to mitigate the impact of the likely disaster.

“NIMET believes that efforts to militate against the
impending flooding should be made by governments of affected areas by taking
precautions to avoid disasters,’’ he said.

He urged stakeholders in disaster management to put in place
measures to address the humanitarian situations caused by climate change.

He also advised the citizenry to be part of efforts to make
the country safe.

The Minister of Environment, Mrs Hadiza Mailafia, in her
goodwill message, said that the 2012 World Humanitarian Day’s theme of
“Greening the Blues’’ was apt as it brought to focus the current challenges
caused by effects of climate change.

The minister, who was represented by an Assistant Director
in the ministry, Mr Theodore Nwaoke, said that the ministry had embarked on
programmes to adapt to climate change and reduce disasters in the country.

In a message, the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP
representative in Nigeria, Mr Daouda Toure, urged humanitarian communities in
the country to show solidarity with people in the Sahel region.

He said people in the Sahel region were currently
experiencing food insecurity, malnutrition and diseases that required urgent
attention.

The UN General Assembly in its resolution in December 2008
set aside Aug. 19 of every year to commemorate the World Humanitarian Day.