The Federal Government (FG) has elevated flood prevention to a national security priority, announcing a strategic shift from reactive disaster management to an early, coordinated response mechanism.
This new approach is encapsulated in a recently unveiled Anticipatory Action Framework on Floods, presented to Vice President Kashim Shettima at the Presidential Villa in Abuja yesterday.
The comprehensive framework incorporates scientific and traditional data-gathering methodologies, establishes clear triggers for early action, and includes a consolidated budget dedicated to flood response.
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Its core objective is to bolster resilience within Nigerian states and communities particularly susceptible to seasonal flooding.
Receiving the draft framework and consolidated budget from the Anticipatory Action Task Force (AATF), Shettima underscored the nation’s imperative to ‘believe in science’ and pursue a proactive roadmap for disaster prevention.
“Disasters are security issues. Over the years, we have only been reacting instead of practising proactive disaster management. By seizing this initiative, and believing in science, we have carried out all the due processes of finding a roadmap,” he stated.
He commended President Bola Tinubu for his leadership in disaster preparedness and acknowledged the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) for its coordinating role.
Shettima also pledged to mobilise key national stakeholders to support the new initiative, emphasising collective resource marshalling to address these critical issues.
Prof. Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, described the framework as a ‘paradigm shift’ in disaster management.
“We are shifting from reaction to recovery. We are also shifting from losses to prevention’, the Minister explained.
He cited devastating statistics from 2004, where floods displaced approximately 1.2 million people, destroyed about 1.3 million hectares of arable farmland, and incurred over $1 billion in losses.
“If we can allocate just one per cent of that money, we can save much more than we lost,” he posited.
Echoing the call for urgency, National Security Adviser (NSA) Nuhu Ribadu stressed the necessity for swift and proactive measures.
While acknowledging that natural disasters are often beyond human control, Ribadu emphasised that ‘reaction is ours.’
He added, “This is what matters the most, the ability for us to get ready for a situation that is not under our control. Despite all the resources one has, as long as one is not in a position to anticipate and be able to react, one is likely going to suffer the worst consequences of natural disasters.”
Providing further insight into the AATF’s efforts, Inna Audu, Special Assistant to the President on Humanitarian Affairs and Development Partners, detailed the task force’s adherence to a defined timeline since March.
This included the inauguration of the AATF, a validation workshop, and the completion of data collection through both scientific and traditional methods to ensure evidence-based decision-making.
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She also revealed the establishment of a Strategic Communication Working Group, operating under the NSA’s office within the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) and led by Major General Adamu Garba Laka.
This group is tasked with implementing a multi-tiered communication and advocacy plan, utilising information from the Trigger Group to ensure states, local government areas, and communities are well-informed, engaged, and prepared to act on early warning triggers.
