Environment
Rising Level Of Orashi River Worries Rivers Communities
Some communities along the Orashi River in Rivers State are now jittery following the rising level of waters in the river.
Sources in the area informed The Tide that the situation is causing sleepless nights among indigenes of the communities some of whom have started making arrangements for their relocation from the area.
The source also told The Tide that farmers in all the communities have commenced the premature harvesting of their crops, while some have started building makeshift structures in the communities.
An indigene of Join Krama, Silver Oku told The Tide via a telephone interview that there is fear among the people of Enginni Kingdom.
Oku said the wreckages of previous floodings in the area including that of last year were yet to be cleared.
According to him, the situation may lead to hunger as farmers are engaged in premature harvesting of their crops and selling them at cheaper fee.
“The flood is pushing in from the direction of Taraba State and our people are in sad mood. Famers are harvesting their cassava and potatoes prematurely. Infact, there is hunger everywhere”.
Oku said the migration of people from Enginni Kingdom is now a common phenomenon, and predicted that this year’s flooding may be worse than last year’s because of the incessant rainfalls.
“Personally, I have gone to negotiate where to stay with my family”, he said.
He regretted the lack of external support to the Kingdom last year.
Also speaking, another indigene of the area, Agamini .W. Agamini said the people are in for difficult times as economic activities have grounded to a halt.
He said children including adults are facing starvation as there are no farming activities in the area.
Agamini also said more people are suffering from Malaria parasite this time around than before while blaming the incessant flooding in the area on the shallow nature of the Orashi River and appealed to both the Rivers State Government and Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to consider the dredging of the river to save the people from incessant flooding. When contacted, the South-South Zonal Director of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Godwin Tepikor confirmed the rising of water in the Orashi River and urged the people to relocate to higher grounds.
By: John Bibor
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.