NIGERIA'S STATEMENT SUBMITTED BY THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY (NEMA) AT THE NINTH AFRICA REGIONAL PLATFORM (AFRP-9) AND THE EIGHTH HIGH-LEVEL MEETING ON DRR HELD IN WINDHOEK, NAMIBIA FROM 21 TO 24 OCTOBER, 2024 INTRODUCTION
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen
1. Nigeria aligns itself with the efforts and intention of the African DRR Working Group on the implementation of SFDRR 2015-2030 and African Program of Action (A-PoA). The Nigerian delegation welcomes the convening of this very important meeting and would like to add the following in country's national capacity.
Mr. President
2. Nigeria acknowledges the Africa's DRR efforts in implementing the Sendai Framework despite challenges faced by Regional Economic Communities and the continent as a whole.
Disaster Context in Nigeria
3. Nigeria faces vulnerabilities to human and nature induced disasters. Violent conflicts such as terrorism, banditry and conflict between farmers and herdsmen have led to high level of fragility and vulnerability. Boat mishap, building collapse, oil tanker, gas and chemical explosions as well as epidemic outbreak have dominated disaster landscape in Nigeria. Climate change and extreme weather events have also served as triggers for disaster. While drought is slow onset, flood is the most common disaster with unprecedented consequences in Nigeria causing human displacement, deaths and extensive damage and destruction to facilities and infrastructure. Inequality in demographic and income structure, access to services, employment opportunities and safe locations for habitation have exposed majority of Nigeria's population, especially women, children, the elderly and people with disabilities to danger of disasters.
Mr. President
4. The implementation of SFDRR in Nigeria is captured under the Four Priority Areas and the Seven Targets from 2022 to September, 2024.
Priority Area 1- Understanding Disaster Risk
This involves engagement of different stakeholders at workshops, seminars, International Day for DRR and other for a such as Nigeria's Governors Forum (NGF); Budget Defense Sessions at the Parliament to create awareness on disaster risk in Nigeria and implement appropriate mitigation and reduction strategies.-
Priority Area 2- Strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risk
Steps taken in Nigeria include: Expansion of NEMA Offices across the country for quick interventions at the state and community levels; Establishment of National and Sub-national Platforms for DRR for effective and efficient coordination of DRM in Nigeria. Other efforts made include creation of DRR Units in National MDAs to mainstream DRR into government organizations, advocacy for strengthening State Emergency Management Agencies (SEMAs) at state level and Local Emergency Management Committees to speed up disaster risk management at the community level. Furthermore, Nigeria has strengthened Volunteerism at community level to educate communities on identification of potential hazards, hazard profiling and disaster risk strategies and establishment of line of communication with relevant authorities in event of a disaster. The Nigerian military currently plays active role in DRM through the establishment of Civil-Military Relations Department in the Ministry of Defense and expansion of the number of Disaster Response Units (DRUs) across different security formations of Army, Navy, Air Force, Police and Civil Defense amongst others.
3. Priority Area 3- Investing in Disaster Risk Reduction for Resilience
This involves the acquisition of disaster management assets including boats, life detecting equipment and excavators for search and rescue and life jackets for safety of riparian communities engaged in water transportation. Other assets acquired include Mobile Intensive Care Units (MICU) Ambulances while significant investment has been made in structural and non-structural recovery measures.
Financing for disaster risk reduction in Nigeria is handled by national and sub-national governments. Currently, 2.3% of the monthly income of the federal government is set aside for ecological remediation and disaster risk management including investment in recovery and resilience
The Federal Government makes special funding for some specific disaster response interventions, mitigation, recovery and adaptation while interventions is always provided in times of sudden onset disaster events.
Priority Area 4 - Enhancing Disaster Preparedness for effective response and to build back better in recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction
Communities affected by disasters are assisted to build back better through rehabilitation and reconstruction of productive assets and infrastructure. The federal government has also embarked on resettlement schemes for persons Impacted by conflict and six states have been selected for the scheme in 2024.
5. The Seven Targets
Target A: Reduction in Global Mortality
Several measures like policies, strategies, plans, program and improvement of healthcare facilities have been put in place to reduce Nigeria's disaster mortality
Target B- Reduction in Number of affected People:
The Federal Government of Nigeria has designed Special Agricultural Intervention Program as well as provision of social safety nets and protection measures to empower people affected by disasters. Social safety nets and protection measures are equally provided in form of cash transfer.
Target C-Reduction in Economic Losses in relation to Nigeria's GDP:
The Federal Government has provided intervention programs that have led to reduction in economic losses to Nigeria's GDP through the provision of agricultural input to restore agricultural activities. Other interventions include the resuscitation of means of livelihood to boost small scale economic activities, policy reforms, waivers and financial support to reduce economic losses.
Target D-Reduction in Disaster damage to critical Infrastructure and disruption of basic services:
Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs) are mandated through special funding supports to implement activities leading to reduction in disaster damage to critical infrastructure and disruption of basic services.
Target E -Substantially increase the number of countries with national and local disaster risk reduction strategies
The Nigerian Government through NEMA has developed the DRR strategy and Action Plan which is to be validated by early December, 2024. The strategy is expected to establish a vision, guiding principles and programming objectives for DRR in Nigeria. It has also developed a National Policy on Internally Displaced Persons (2021) ; Nigeria Nationally Determined Contribution Implementation Framework (2023-2030) for Paris Agreement; Nigeria Road Safety Strategy II (NRSSII) on reduction of road crashes and the National Protection Policy and Strategy for Critical National Assets and Infrastructure (2023). Other plans include the National Contingency Plan (2023-2030) ; Enactment of Counter-terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act of 2022 and subsequent establishment of the National Counter Terrorism Centre (2023), the enactment of Climate Change Act (2021) and the subsequent establishment of National Council on Climate Change (2023).
Target F- Substantially enhance international cooperation to developing countries through adequate and support to complement their national actions for implementation of SFDRR;
The Nigerian government has international cooperation with different organizations to complement her actions in the implementation of SFDRR over the years. Some of the institutions include The World Bank which provided support for the conduct of Grade Assessment for the 2022 flood in Nigeria. The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) has provided adequate assistance through the Sahel Resilience Project for the conduct National and six sub-national Platforms in Nigeria. It has also supported Nigeria in the development of National DRR Strategy 2023-2030 and Action Plan 2024-2027. It has supported in the conduct of several workshops to build capacity of national stakeholders on the creation of disaster data hub in Nigeria with the provision of 37 Samsung tablets through AGRHYMET. UNICEF has supported in the conduct of six zonal workshops on risk analysis in the Nigeria from 2023 to 2024 to aid in the National Multi-hazard Contingency Plan. In the same vein, the Japanese government through Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has supplied mobile water purification trucks to help in provision of clean water for disaster affected communities in Nigeria while the UNOCHA has supported NEMA in upgrading of its geospatial centre.
Target G-Substantially increase the availability of and access to multi-hazard Early Warning systems and disaster risk information and assessments to people by 2030
Early warning has been recognized as critical tool to build resilience against both human and nature induced disasters including extreme weather events as well as conflicts. With a 5 -year ambitious target set by UN Secretary General "that everyone on earth is covered by early warning from 2022 to 2027", a Multi-Hazard Early Warning System (MHEWS) for early action strategy has been put in place for hydro-meteorological hazards and conflict induced disasters in Nigeria. Organizations involved are Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMet); Nigerian Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA), NEMA), Nigerian Geological Agency (NGA), the Institute for Peace and Conflicts Resolution (IPCR), the Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation Agency as well as the media is involved in early warning information dissemination
6. Conclusion
Nigeria prides itself to be amongst the comity of nations that have placed disaster risk reduction as a key priority area in its national development planning as driven by both national and sub national level institutions. Nigeria has demonstrated in its modest efforts to implement SFDRR. The disaster risk profile of Nigeria coupled with protracted and emerging hazards have constituted a wakeup call for more conscious implementation of SFDRR 2015-2030. Nigeria looks towards sustaining the tempo of the paradigm shift towards disaster risk reduction and the building of its national resilience through active collaboration with regional and global actors to achieve progress in the implementation of the SFDRR.