DISASTER MANAGEMENT IN NIGERIA

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

It is a fact of life tat at one time or the other a country or community will be faced with adversity, a calamity, a catastrophe, a disaster or an emergency, natural or man-made. Realizing disaster as a fact of life and need to always prepare for its eventuality led the federal government of Nigeria to formulate a National policy on disaster management, which is meant to carter for required responsibilities of federal, states and local government respectively when disaster occur in any part of Nigeria.

 When disaster struck, they affect economic activities, people loose tier means of livelihood, proportion are damaged, Epidemic outbreak, hemes are destroyed. But life must go on. It is important to find ways to solve these problems

 Economic activities are dirrupted as a resulot of flood in different parts of Nigeria. The 2012 flood was estimated to have a total value of losses across all sector of the economy at $7l5bn and the combined value of tjese da,ages amd losses was estimated at $16.9bn.

 Agricultural activites such as farming and farm lands were washed away as a result of the heavy flood, disaster. It resulted to low agricultural activities at the end of the year.

 Unba/rural migratyion as a result of the Boko-haram crisis is not also left out as the clashes between security agents and militant groups caused a lot of migrqaiton across states in Ngieria.

 Therefore, this must be a way fo restricting rehabilitating and reviving victims and economic activities caused by these disaster. There were cases of outbreak of epidemic in some areas, transportation, roads, bridges and agricultural activities were totally paralsed.

 Better ways are need to tackle and fast track or avert this disasters in Nigeria in order to reduce or eradicate its effects on people and economic activities in Nigeria. Disaster imoacts have become an impediment to sustainable development in Nigeria. Nigeria is not the most disaster prone nation but it is the only country whose shne of reported disaster in the world total has increased over the last decades. More people and communities are affected by natural hazartds, and economic losses incurred are rising because Nigeria is one of the countries vulnerable to disaster sub-regional economics communities and governments are making various effort to reduce disaster in Nigeria burt policies and mechanisms for disaster risk reduction area at varied stages of development and time limited impact on disaster management in Nigeria.

The problem of this study is a disaster management in Nigeria at both the present and the future. It seeks to do this through the processes of data gathering and analysis to provide empirical evidence on disaster management and related issues. These include the problems of compensation, rehabilitation, datas and information, and slow respond to disaster by authorities in Nigeria.

1. COMPENSATION:  Millions of Nigerians affected by these disaster are poorly or not compensated at all. Many of the ictims are left to suffer or die at their own detriment. This is very sad for a coutnryu like Nigeria to allow victims of disaster to suffer. Nigeria is one of the worlds best economies and therefore her citizens need not to suffer when disaster occur. This study will provide a better means of compension.

2. REHABILITATION:  Areas affected by disaster and their victims will nto be allowed to remain just like tat.  There are cases of abandoned roads, bridgesw, dams, houses and victims, of disaster are left unattended to individual government agencies, charitable organisaiton and to come together to tackle this issue. Victim are therefore left to suffer in port tranumatic conditions. This study will also provide ways of rehabilitating victims fo disaster through a rehabilitation scheme meant to carter for victims of disaster.

3. SLOW RESPOND BY DISASTER MANAGEMENT AGENCIES:  In Nigeria today disaster respond takes one week or more for disaster management teams to arrive scene of disaster. There is a case of life and death. Disaster respond shouldn’t take more than an hour to respond to any form of disaster in Nigeria no matter the distane, place or time of the disaster. This study will help to provide a network of telephone lines and short message serices (SMS) countries to respond instantly to disaster. Its going to be a kind of 24 hours phone & SMS network.

4. INFORMATION AND DATAS:  There are no existing information and dates of disaster prone areas and region in Nigeria thus this has made it difficult for disaster managers in Nigeria to tackle disaster effectively and efficiently. If there are existing information such as water logged areas, landslide regions, vulcane eruption zones, fire disaster areas slippery rods and danger zone peole wil know how to apply saety to these areas. But there are no existing information and datas.

5. EDUCATION:  Nigerians are not or properly educated or enlightened on issues relating to disaster. For this reasons, when disasters struck many people are affected. Agencies like National orientation agencies (NOA), National Emergency Management Agency *NEMA), Federal Fire Service (FFS), Federal Road Safety Corp (FRSC) are not carrying out massive campaign to educate people in the issue relating to disaster and its management.

Therefore, the study will helpo to tackle these problem and provide useful information that will be of benefit to governement, individuals, agencies, charitable organisaiton, policy maker and future researchers.