Editor
By Fatima Saka
The Director General of National Emergency Management Agency, Mustapha Habib Ahmed has said that it is the responsibility of every Nigeria to set
priorities and actions to reduce the risk of disasters and build resilience in Nigeria.
The DG NEMA made this call on Wednesday in Abuja at the opening of a Technical Workshop on Sendai Framework Monitoring And Reporting, 2015-2030.
The workshop was organized by NEMA in collaboration with United Nations Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
In scaling up the Early Warning as predicted at the Conference of the Parties COP28 in UAE, DG NEMA appealed to the stakeholders that Disaster Risk Reduction and the Sendai Framework are both intense and need urgent attention.
While welcoming the stakeholders, He emphasized that as stakeholders gather at the technical sessions of this workshop, that more priority should be focused on the lives and livelihoods of Nigerians. “Our collective efforts can make a difference in reducing the impact of disasters, protecting vulnerable communities, and fostering risk informed sustainable development.
“It is imperative that our monitoring and reporting mechanism is inclusive within the context of “leaving no one behind”.
“We must recognize that the diverse needs and vulnerabilities of our people and communities are crucial for the overall stability and sustainability of Nigeria.
“It is my pleasure and privilege to welcome you all to this important workshop convened to prepare and equip stakeholders in Nigeria to monitor and report on the progress, challenges and opportunities on national disaster risk management in the Nigeria based on the Sendal Framework Monitor (SFM) As we assemble here today for this laudable exercise, we must recall that the global community faces unprecedented challenges of nature and human induced disasters exacerbated by climate change and extreme weather events.
“In the face of these complexities, our commitment to effective disaster risk reduction becomes more imperative than ever before. The Sendal Framework, adopted in 2015, represents a landmark international agreement to chart the course for global disaster risk reduction efforts. Within the context of this workshop, four targets of Sendai Framework on substantial reduction will be given priority on the monitoring and reporting dashboard.
Speaking of data driving reporting The Director-General said that monitoring and reporting of disaster events remain a pillar in the implementation of the Sendai Framework which is data-driven.
He added that It enabled the assessment of progress, identifying gaps and analyzing impact of our actions to enable a recalibration of our strategies to address evolving disaster challenges. ‘Placing data in the forefront to achieve the monitoring and reporting of disaster events underscores the rationale for NEMA’s stakeholder workshop in September, 2022 which revived the national disaster data platform in the same vein, another workshop was organized by NEMA in collaboration with ECOWAS and UNDP in November 2022.
“The workshop agreed on the need for an integrated disaster database and risk information management system in Nigeria to strengthen existing databases and capacities across Ministries, Departments and Agencies.”
While underscoring the activities of NEMA, He said: “our efforts on DRR monitoring and reporting, NEMA was invited to represent Nigeria in the Mid-term Review of Sendai Framework for DRR 2015-2030 in New York in May, 2022. Nigeria’s efforts in the implementation of the Framework were presented to the admiration of the DRR global community during the event. Furthermore, NEMA participated in the 78 Session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) where I made a presentation in a side event on Disaster Risk Coordination, Human Displacement and Forced Migration.
“Equally of note is our participation at the 28th Session of Conference of Parties (COP-28) in Dubai. During the event, NEMA called on the UN and other international organizations to upscale their support for Early Warning Systems in developing and developed countries including Small Developing Island Nations. Just last week from 23d to 26th, January, 2024, NEMA was at Kobe, Japan to attend the International Recovery Forum. NEMA made a presentation on Nigeria’s disaster recovery scenario as part of experience sharing with partners. In addition, NEMA team served in three different panels on critical disaster recovery thematic areas of global interest.”
While appreciating stakeholders for their cooperation and support, he said “we must sustain the tempo of driving the monitoring and reporting of disaster risk management activities on the UN Sendai Framework Monitor with a vision to achieve the lead country in West Africa sub-region and Africa as a whole. The achievement will launch Nigeria to global reckoning and place the country in the forefront of disaster resilient development trajectory.”
While delivering his goodwill remarks, the Director General Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) Prof Charles Anosike assured the commitment of his organization to strengthen the existing partnership with NEMA towards disaster risk reduction in the country.
He said “disasters pose significant challenges to our nation, and we must work together to enhance our coordination mechanism with disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation for better understanding and communication of cost benefit.
“This workshop serves as an important platform for sharing knowledge, experiences, and best practices in this field. We believe that by fostering partnerships and collaboration, we can collectively strengthen Nigeria’s resilience and effectively mitigate the impacts of disasters.”
Also, the Country Representative of UNDP, Mr. Olivier Abayisenga said that the increasing indefinite liability of DRR is in the consequences of population, “but also on the other aspects when you look at the climate Paris Agreement, the Sendai framework for disaster risk reduction in the SDG framework for disaster risk reduction in the SDG framework.
“They are being implemented by countries by different institutions, different policies and now resulting in the parallel discussions.”
Others stakeholders who assured their commitment towards fostering partnership among the relevant agencies on Disaster Risk Reduction was also the center of remarks by other speakers that include;
The Director General Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA) Engr Clem Onyeaso Nze, Director General of National Space Research and Development Agency Dr Halilu Shaba, who was represented by Mr Ademuyiwa Oyewumi, Acting Director General Federal Capital Territory Emergency Management Agency Alhaji Ibrahim Sabo.
