NEMA calls for a coordinated, inclusive approach to strengthen Nigeria's resilience against natural hazards.
The Director-General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Zubaida Umar, has called for a coordinated and inclusive approach to strengthen Nigeria's resilience against natural hazards.
Umar made the call at the Validation Workshop for the National Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Strategy (2025-2030) and Action Plan (2025-2028) in Abuja, emphasizing the need for stakeholders from government, communities, private sector, academia, and civil society to collaborate in shaping the strategy.
The new DRR strategy, anchored on the globally recognized Sendai Framework, aims to shift Nigeria's disaster management paradigm from reactive responses to proactive prevention.
Umar stated that the risks posed by natural hazards threaten not only lives and livelihoods but also sustainable national economic development, peace, and security, noting that the strategy is widely seen as a blueprint to build resilience, adapt to climate change, and safeguard Nigeria's hard-won development progress.
Also speaking, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative, Elsie Attafuah, who noted that recent assessments showed over 45,000 disaster incidents nationwide, covering 23 priority hazards, stressed the need for evidence-based planning and targeted resilience building.
The Ministry of Women Affairs also highlighted the importance of integrating gender perspectives, equity, and inclusivity in disaster risk reduction strategies, recognizing the critical role women and girls play in resilience, innovation, and recovery.
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