The National Emergency Management Agency, (NEMA) has appealed for concerted efforts among stakeholders to mitigate floods which have begun in parts of the country.
The Director General of NEMA, Mustapha Ahmed made call in Abuja at a national emergency coordination forum which attracted participants from relevant establishments.
He said coordination was a critical aspect of disaster management which needed to be given attention.
The Director General of Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency, (NHISA), Mr. Clement Nze said the period between July and September was the peak of flooding in the country, and Nigeria was the worse hit among countries in the River Niger Basin due to its location.
According to Mr. Nze, 27 percent of prediction has indicated accuracy, hence the urgent need to strengthen collaboration to reduce the impact of flooding.
He said Kainji, Jebba and Shiroro dams in Nigeria were impounding water, same as dams in neighbouring Cameroon and Niger Republics.
Mr. Nze emphasized that the agency was in contact touch with the countries for the control of inflow of water, to checkmate flooding.
Also, the Statistician General of the Federation, Adeyemi Ademirati said flood had impact on the economy which affects the nation’s Gross Domestic Product, GDP.
He explained that over 500 billion naira was lost to last year’s flooding in the Agricultural sector alone.
The Statistician General of the Federation decried lack of data on disaster, while advocating synergy for accurate data for effective disaster management in the country.
So far, five persons have been reported dead in floods which have ravaged ten states, rendered over seven thousand homeless and affected more than thirty-three thousand people.
