The National Economic Council has directed the strengthening of State Emergency Management Agencies (SEMAs) across all 36 states of the federation and asked the Federal Ministry of Finance to release emergency funds to address impending flood effects.
The council’s resolution came following a presentation by Mrs. Zubaida Umar, Director General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), on the country’s 2025 flood preparedness and response initiatives during the council’s meeting.
NEMA’s presentation detailed the agency’s progress since 2024, including production of the National Disaster Risk Reduction Strategy and Action Plan (2024-2027) with United Nations support, and ongoing validation of the Nigeria Hazard Risk Countrywide Analysis for 2024.
The agency has also improved civil-military coordination on disaster risk reduction and relief operations through partnerships with military disaster response units, the Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, and the Nigeria Red Cross.
Key preparedness actions undertaken in 2025 include expert review and analysis of meteorological forecasts, with NEMA communicating flood predictions to state governments between May and June. The agency has strengthened SEMAs and established Local Emergency Management Committees, while activating the Emergency Coordination Forum involving military, police and civil defence disaster response units.
The Emergency Operations Centre was activated on May 29, 2025, with national and zonal centres now operational. NEMA has deployed search and rescue equipment to high-risk states and continues downscaling early warning messages across all 36 states to local communities through the National Preparedness and Response Campaign.
NEMA, however, identified persistent challenges hindering effective flood response, including weak drainage infrastructure, delayed data reporting from states, insecurity in flood-prone areas, limited functionality of SEMAs and inactive Local Emergency Management Committees. Additional concerns include poor compliance with urban planning and building codes, alongside inadequate environmental hygiene and waste management systems.
State governments were urged to fully strengthen SEMAs, operationalise Local Emergency Management Committees, enforce physical planning laws and building code compliance, and institutionalise monthly environmental sanitation while prioritising disaster preparedness funding in annual budgets.
Local government areas and communities were specifically directed to take ownership of local risk mitigation efforts, engage actively in awareness campaigns, and report early signs of flood risk to appropriate authorities.
To this end, council directed the Federal Ministry of Finance to release funds to each state of the Federation, the FCT and some Federal Agencies for this year’s flood preparedness.
