NEMA PRESENTS NIGERIA’S SHIFT TO DISASTER PREPAREDNESS AT AFRICAN CONFERENCE

NEMA PRESENTS NIGERIA’S SHIFT TO DISASTER PREPAREDNESS AT AFRICAN CONFERENCE

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has presented Nigeria’s evolving approach to disaster risk management at the International Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience in Africa (ICDRRR), held in Maputo, Mozambique, from 13 to 15 October 2026.

The conference brought together representatives from more than 40 African Union member states, regional organisations, including the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), as well as international partners such as the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), International Organization for Migration (IOM), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), World Bank, GIZ and International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).

Mozambique’s President, His Excellency Daniel Francisco Chapo, who serves as the African Union’s Champion for Disaster Risk Reduction, attended the opening ceremony and called for stronger regional cooperation and increased investment by African governments in disaster risk reduction.

A major highlight for Nigeria was a joint presentation by NEMA’s Sendai Framework focal person, Miss Aisha Ibrahim, and the Deputy Director in the Department of Climate Change, Federal Ministry of Environment, Mr. Jonah D. Barde. Their presentation examined the opportunities and challenges of integrating climate change action and disaster risk reduction into a unified resilience agenda, drawing on Nigeria’s experience.

On the sidelines of the conference, the Nigerian delegation also met with representatives of the Federal Ministry of Environment and UNDRR to discuss strategies for strengthening coordination between climate change initiatives and disaster risk reduction activities in Nigeria.

During the ministerial meeting on the final day, the delegation presented Nigeria’s shift towards a more proactive disaster management approach, with greater emphasis on preparedness, anticipatory action, resilience building and inter-agency coordination over the past two years.

The presentation highlighted NEMA’s 2026 National Flood Preparedness and Response Plans, inter-ministerial engagements on Seasonal Climate Predictions (SCP) and Annual Flood Outlooks (AFO), the Early Warnings for All initiative launched under the leadership of the Director General, Mrs. Zubaida Umar, the nationwide dissemination of 2026 flood predictions and four simulation exercises. It also featured ongoing Super El Niño mitigation activities coordinated by NEMA in collaboration with relevant stakeholders, including the Ministries of Environment, Agriculture, Health and Water Resources, alongside the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) and the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA).

The Nigerian delegation called on development partners and donor agencies to provide more targeted funding and capacity-building support for disaster risk management across Africa. It also urged African governments to recognise investment in disaster risk reduction as a critical component of sustainable development.

Nigeria’s participation reinforced the importance of regional cooperation, integrated climate and disaster risk policies, and sustained investment in preparedness to reduce disaster impacts and protect vulnerable communities.

16 October 2026