…warns of high flood risks

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), in collaboration with Sahel Consulting, has launched the 2026 National Preparedness and Response Campaign on Flood Disaster and Related Hazards in Taraba state, warning that 23 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) face a high risk of flooding during the rainy season.

Speaking at the flag-off ceremony in Jalingo on Friday, the Director-General of NEMA, Hajia Zubaida Umar, said the campaign, themed “Strengthening Disaster Risk Governance for a Resilient Nigeria,” was aimed at promoting early and coordinated action to safeguard lives and livelihoods.

Represented by the North-East Zonal Director of NEMA, Alhaji Sulaiman Yakubu, Umar noted that recurrent flooding continues to inflict heavy human and economic losses across the country.

“Flooding claims lives, destroys livelihoods, damages infrastructure worth billions of naira annually, and leaves many communities displaced and vulnerable,” she said.

Umar recalled projections from the 2026 Seasonal Climate Prediction and Annual Flood Outlook released by the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) and the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA), which identified 23 states and 132 local government areas as high-risk flood zones. An additional 14 states and 148 LGAs were classified as moderate-risk areas.

She explained that the outlook also highlighted potential climate-related challenges, including delayed or erratic rainfall, shorter growing seasons, above-normal rainfall in some locations, prolonged dry spells and rising temperatures.

According to her, these conditions could significantly affect key sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, transportation, energy, water supply, education and overall public wellbeing.

To mitigate the anticipated impacts, Umar announced that NEMA had developed the 2026 Climate-Related Risk Management, Preparedness and Mitigation Framework.

She said the framework focuses on strengthening the capacity of local responders, conducting simulation and tabletop exercises, ensuring compliance with rainfall advisories, pre-positioning relief materials in vulnerable communities, assessing critical infrastructure and developing community evacuation plans.

“NEMA’s Flood Early Warning System has also produced vulnerability maps for all at-risk communities to support targeted planning and intervention by federal, state and local authorities,” she added.

Umar expressed confidence that the campaign would improve disaster preparedness and reduce the impact of flooding across the country, in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.

Presenting NiMet’s 2026 Seasonal Climate Prediction for Taraba state, Mr Blessing Akanbi said the rainy season was expected to commence between April 11 and May 16.

According to Akanbi, the earliest onset is projected around April 11 in Sardauna, Takum, Ussa and Kurmi local government areas, while Donga, Gashaka, Wukari, Bali and Gassol are expected to experience rainfall onset from April 19.

He added that Jalingo, Ardo-Kola, Yorro and Zing LGAs are likely to record onset from May 5, while Lau and Karim Lamido LGAs are expected to experience the latest onset from May 13.

In his remarks, the Taraba state Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs and Special Duties, Mr Savior Noku, commended NEMA and its partners for adopting a proactive approach to disaster management.

Noku said the state government was already taking steps to relocate residents from disaster-prone communities to safer locations.

“With Taraba sharing a long stretch of the River Benue and several other rivers, the government remains committed to implementing measures that will reduce the impact of flooding,” he said.

Also speaking, the representative of Sahel Consulting, Miss Henrietta Gurumlat, praised NEMA for the initiative and reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to supporting efforts aimed at reducing disaster risks across Nigeria.