Geologist and climate technology enthusiast, Becky Peremoboere Bamiekumo, has explained how climate change issues affect economic development and resource optimisation in Nigeria.
Bamiekumo, a data scientist at Geosoft Global, made this known to the press on Wednesday while explaining how climate change challenges are affecting Nigeria’s weather conditions, ecology, economy, and production activities.
She stated that climate change significantly disrupts Nigeria’s economic development and resource use, especially through rising temperatures, erratic rainfall, floods, and droughts that destroy infrastructure, reduce human and labour productivity, reduce agricultural output, and displace populations.
She explained how, in agrarian states like Benue and Ebonyi, soil degradation worsens food insecurity, and how in Bayelsa and other Niger Delta states, flooding damages oil facilities, roads, and homes, causing economic losses. She further explained how low-income earners, women, children, and rural populations face the greatest risks associated with climate change realities in the country.
“In Bayelsa, Kebbi, and Jigawa, yearly flooding causes displacement and loss of livelihood. Agriculture, employing over 60 per cent of Nigerians, is affected by erratic rainfall and heat waves. Fishermen in Cross River and farmers in Delta State face saltwater intrusion and declining yields. These groups have limited access to climate data,” she added.
In light of this, Bamiekumo stressed that adaptive strategies for vulnerable communities and economic sectors are needed to manage the situation, which, according to her, include climate-smart agriculture, drought-resistant crops, and mangrove restoration in flood-prone areas like Bayelsa and other Niger Delta states.
Others, she stated, included solar irrigation, diversified income sources away from oil and gas, early warning systems that enhance resilience, artificial intelligence (AI) tools that can ensure optimal planting times and locations using real-time soil and weather data, and machine learning (ML) models that can help forecast crop diseases and improve yields.
She stressed that judicious deployment of technology and innovative strategies are the most effective ways Nigeria can manage the climate challenges facing its people and resources.
Bamiekumo listed and explained these technologies to include GIS, satellite imagery, AI, ML, mobile apps, among others, which can help forecast climate risks, optimise resource use, and support proactive policies. She further explained how AI and ML technologies can process large climate datasets to predict rainfall, droughts, and floods, and how GIS supports mapping of erosion, deforestation, and urban heat zones.
“In Bayelsa, drones and GIS are used to monitor mangrove loss and land subsidence. Mobile apps powered by AI deliver localised weather updates to farmers in Nasarawa and Plateau. Solar systems integrated with ML optimise energy use in off-grid areas, while GIS-based urban planning helps build climate-resilient cities,” she said.
The geologist went on to explain how countries Rwanda, the Netherlands, and India offer valuable lessons on the adaptive strategies for effective climate management. She said that Rwanda employs GIS and drones for reforestation and land monitoring, the Netherlands uses AI to manage flood control systems useful for flood-prone areas, and India applies ML for crop insurance and weather forecasting to protect farmers.
“Nigeria can adapt these methods by integrating AI/ML into agriculture, urban planning, and disaster response while using GIS to guide zoning and community mapping for resilience,” she added.
Bamiekumo advised the government to mainstream AI/ML and GIS into national and state climate action plans and to invest in satellite monitoring, data infrastructure, and AI/ML forecasting tools.
She urged agencies like the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to deploy innovative AI and ML-based early warning systems in their operations. She recommended the establishment of climate innovation hubs that can support startups developing AI, ML, and GIS tools for flood prediction, sustainable agriculture, and environmental monitoring.
The geologist emphasised that local people and communities have a vital role to play in contributing to the management of climate change issues in the country. In this regard, she explained how community-led data collection can improve AI model accuracy and how education, public awareness, and inclusion in tech initiatives are key to building grassroots climate resilience.
