Flooding: Shettima Directs Anticipatory Action Task Force, NEMA, Others To Activate Early Action

As the rainy season peaks, with its torrential downpours, Vice President Kashim Shettima has directed the activation of the Fusion and Trigger Room concept for coordination and early action to combat flooding in Nigeria.

Accordingly, he asked the Anticipatory Action Task Force (AATF), the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), and other relevant agencies to immediately review and update their budgets in line with approved allocations and establish clear priorities for implementation.

Shettima, who gave the directive on Thursday during a meeting of the AATF at the Presidential Villa, insisted on a shift from reactive response to proactive preparedness, saying the direction of President Bola Tinubu’s administration leaves no room for ambiguity in combating floods and other climate-related disasters.

According to him, preparedness, coordination and early action must become the standard practice for managing risks in the country.

Shettima, Chairman of the AATF, observed that while climate and disaster risks are becoming more frequent and severe with every passing season, government’s responsibility should no longer be confined to responding only when emergencies arise.

“We are called to act early, to reduce losses before they multiply and to protect vulnerable communities before crises unfold around them,” he stated.

Shettima maintained that Nigeria needed an institutional mechanism that would enable the nation “to anticipate hazards, consolidate data, coordinate decisions and activate action before emergencies escalate beyond our reach.

“I am directing that technical consultations begin at once to operationalise the Fusion and Trigger Room concept within NEMA as a national platform for coordination and early action. This platform should anchor our monitoring, our forecasting, the activation of triggers, coordination across agencies and the decisions that follow from them,” he added.

The Vice President also asked NEMA and other relevant agencies, as well as technical teams, “to review and update the budget immediately in line with approved allocations and to establish clear priorities for implementation.”

He further implored them to “work closely together to expedite the release and deployment of approved resources and to ensure that implementation timelines are never held hostage by administrative delays.”

Insisting on proactive preparedness, the Vice President said: “Anticipatory action, therefore, rises or falls on speed and readiness. Resources intended for preparedness and early response must be available at the precise moment they are required.

“To wait until disaster strikes before releasing what we have already approved is to defeat the very purpose of acting early. I am therefore directing the relevant institutions to work closely together to expedite the release and deployment of approved resources and to ensure that implementation timelines are never held hostage by administrative delays,” he maintained.

Addressing the issue of political support and state participation, the Vice President implored state governments to participate actively, noting that preparedness cannot succeed without ownership at the sub-national level.

“I call on our state governors and state institutions to participate actively and to lead implementation within their jurisdictions. Federal coordination on its own will never be sufficient.

“As Chairman of the national coordination effort, I will continue to engage with stakeholders to ensure that political leadership is translated into practical outcomes and preparedness that can be measured on the ground,” he stated.