Flooding: NEC plans new dams for S’East, S’South

The National Economic Council, Nigeria’s highest economic advisory body, on Thursday, recommended the inclusion of the South East and South-South in the construction of dams.

The council also backed an earlier Federal Government directive mandating the Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation to commence a comprehensive integrity test of Nigeria’s waterways and dams to mitigate flooding.

Anambra State Governor, Prof Charles Soludo, revealed this after the 144th meeting of the council chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima at the State House, Abuja.

Soludo said the Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof Joseph Utsev, had briefed members of the council on the government’s interventions after the disastrous impact of this year’s floods.

The ministry had earlier identified 148 local government areas in the country spanning 31 states as high-flood-risk areas from April to November 2024.

According to Soludo, after receiving the presentation from the minister, NEC resolved that “the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation should conduct an integrity review of all the waterways and dams across the country.

“There was a serious emphasis on the need for a massive programme of dredging of the waterways. The council also urged governors who have not submitted their reports on the situation of flooding and management in their states to do so immediately.

“Council also noted that the Green Climate Fund should have an infrastructure resilient fund component and it was also noted that there some critical parts of the country that are very massively ravaged by this flooding, particularly the South East/South South that are completely omitted in the ongoing programmes of the construction of dams, at least to act as speed bumps along the highways, particularly in the River Niger,” he said.

The former Central Bank of Nigeria Governor said the council considered the national emergency and the responses on the damages and the coordination taking place between the states and the Federal Government and outlined further steps that should be taken.

“To date, about 34 states have been affected, 217 local governments and 1,374,557 persons already affected and 740,743 persons displaced nationwide and 321 persons dead, 20,845 injured with 250,800 hectares cultivated farmlands also destroyed or affected by the rapid floods,” the governor added.

Soludo said the council emphasised the need for an annual desilting programme for waterways to reduce future flood risks.

During his presentation, Utsev informed the council that a technical sub-committee appointed by the President on October 8, 2024, is undertaking its assignment and will compile an interim report to be presented to the inter-ministerial committee for onward transmission to the President.