Environment
Flood: NES Boss Debunks Claims Over 2013 Prediction
Contrary to opinion held
in most quarters that the much predicted flood of 2013 did not come, the National President of the Nigerian Environmental Society (NES), Dr. Olu Andah, has debunked such claims.
The NES boss, who spoke with our correspondent in an exclusive interview in his office, in Port Harcourt, recently, said it would not be very correct to say that the predicted flood did not come.
He said the meteorological agencies’ predictions looked comparative to what happened in 2012 and the people’s experiences even as he frowned on how the 2012 flood was managed.
According to him, there was no actual plans put in place to relate the past experiences in 2012 to that of 2013 in terms of post-flood management activities.
“That we did not have the magnitude of the 2012 flood in 2013 does not mean there was no flood
“We have flood every year and for those of us in the Niger Delta and for those of us that live along the major rivers and creeks, we know there is flood every year” he said.
He said there was the need for the various agencies from the national to local government levels to work in synergy with a view to proffering solutions to the management of emergencies as they arise.
“The states and even the local governments, the ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs, how many of them have on ground the facilities or capacity to tell us the level of water in their area especially in the coastal zones across their area of jurisdiction.
“How many of these states and local government areas have water benchmark where they can safely say, yes 2010 this was the height of water in our area and 2012;” he queried.
The NES boss said except such measurements were on ground we could not scientifically compare the magnitude of yearly flooding even as he said the truth remains that we do not have the plans on ground to be able to mitigate the effect of flooding.
We don’t have them so we thank God that the 2013 flood was not as heavy as predicted.
“If it has happened, what plans did we put on ground to have checked the impact,” he said.
Continuing, he said whether the magnitude of the flood of 2013 was low, it was still a wake up call for governments and other agencies to start putting in place measures that would acquaint the rural people on how to get prepared in case of such occurrences.
For the people in the local areas, this is what NIMET should focus attention on.
“NIMET by that announcement is trying to say in directly that the manufacturing industries should have weather monitoring stations so that they will be able to act promptly in cases of emergencies” he said.
A broken pipe of an oil well located in Egbebiri Area of Biseni Community, Yenagoa Local Government Area, Bayelsa State discharging a mixture of crude and gas into the surrounding environment, yesterday. Photo: NAN
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.