The Federal Government will, in May 2025, commence a nationwide flood sensitisation campaign across 30 high-risk states and the Federal Capital Territory to mitigate the impact of potential disasters during the rainy season.
This initiative, aimed at increasing public awareness and community preparedness, was disclosed by the Deputy Director, Department of Flood, Erosion Control and Coastal Management at the Federal Ministry of Environment, Mr Kunle Awojemila, in an interview with The PUNCH on Sunday.
According to him, the campaign will kick off in the FCT, starting with Dutse, and later move to flood-prone areas such as Lokogoma and Lugbe.
“We are starting the flood awareness sensitisation campaign in the first week of May.
In the FCT, we will begin in Dutse, then move to areas like Lokogoma, Lugbe, and others, consequently. Other states will commence their awareness campaigns as well,” Awojemila said.
The decision comes on the heels of the 2025 Annual Flood Outlook released by the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency, which projected that approximately 1,249 communities in 176 Local Government Areas across 30 states and the FCT would likely experience significant flooding between April and November this year.
Presenting the forecast in Abuja, the Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof. Joseph Utsev, listed the states at high risk to include Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara, and the FCT.
Utsev warned that flooding, exacerbated by climate change, remains one of the country’s most destructive natural disasters.
He noted that coastal and riverine areas—such as Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Lagos, Ogun, Rivers, and Ondo—face the dual threats of rising sea levels and tidal surges, which could negatively impact fishing, wildlife habitats, and river transport.
Statistics from the National Emergency Management Agency showed that in 2024 alone, floods affected 217 local government areas in 34 states, impacting over 1.3 million people. Of these, 740,734 were displaced, 321 died, and 2,854 sustained various injuries.
Thousands of hectares of farmland were also destroyed.
In a related development, the Director General of NEMA, Mrs Zubaida Umar, has called for heightened grassroots emergency readiness to avert further losses during the impending flood season.
Speaking on Saturday at the close of a five-day awareness campaign in Ado Ekiti, Umar, represented by the Head of NEMA’s Ekiti Operations Office, Dr Kofoworola Soleye, said: “Sensitising residents at the grassroots level to understand their exposure to hazards, safety measures and how to respond to emergencies, especially with the onset of the rains, would go a long way in mitigating the adverse impact of flood disaster.”
Umar said the initiative, known as the Grassroots Emergency Preparedness and Awareness Drive (GEPAD), is a high-impact, community-focused programme intended to fill knowledge gaps in vulnerable communities.
She stressed that many Nigerians, despite past flood tragedies, remained unaware of even the most basic safety and evacuation protocols.
The sensitisation campaign took NEMA officials to Ikere Ekiti and Ido/Osi LGAs, where they held sessions with local leaders and stakeholders to promote proactive flood management strategies. Residents were urged to relocate to safer ground upon detecting signs of flooding and were educated on evacuation procedures.
Umar underscored the importance of community involvement, stating that early preparation and response remain critical to minimising the devastation caused by natural disasters.
The Federal Government’s dual-pronged approach—combining national outreach with grassroots education—is part of its broader strategy to enhance disaster resilience and reduce loss of lives and property during the 2025 rainy season.
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