Article: https://allafrica.com/view/group/main/main/id/00083448.html
Since July Nigeria has been undergoing major flooding, 29 of the countries’ *36 states have been affected by the flooding more than 300 people have died and it is estimated that the number of people displaced could be upwards of 500,000. NEMA (The Nigerian National Emergency Management Agency) has said that the situation could worsen after the neighboring nation of Cameroon opened its flood gates at a dam to release excess water. The country usually experiences flooding during July to September, so hopefully the end of the flood is in sight. But until then, flood victims are taking shelter in schools, public buildings, and temporary relief camps. The Director General of NEMA Mustapha Habib Ahmed noted an increase of infectious diseases such as Cholera and Malaria.
Nigeria is one of the poorest developing Nations in the world, this is part of the reason why, these large flooding seasons where hundreds can die in the course of a few months and hundreds of thousands of others displaced prevent the country from having people pay taxes, get clean food or water, or use whatever money they have left after the flood. Part of the reason the flooding has gotten so bad is because of Climate Change according to Huma Haider of the Institute of Development Studies in England “Nigeria’s climate has been changing, evident in: increases in temperature; variable rainfall; rise in sea level and flooding; drought and desertification; land degradation; more frequent extreme weather events; affected fresh water resources and loss of biodiversity”. The upwards trend of rainfall and temperatures in Nigeria are unlikely to go down considering the nature of climate change. The vicious cycle of massive flooding in Nigeria is likely to keep the country poor and in a weak state.
Recently in class we have been discussing NGOs (non-governmental organizations), NGOs assist people, usually poorer or oppressed ones, by giving them access to basic necessities. Organizations like the Abibimman Foundation, the Abraham Omuya Foundation, or the Abraham Omuya Foundation for example all operate within Nigeria helping Nigerians traverse the complex and dangerous situation they have found themselves in. The Abibimman Foundation is mainly concerned with equal rights and access to basic needs for the people, where as the Abraham Omuya Foundation and the Barhama Omuya Foundation are both more concerned with more economic aspects of the country, (Omuya is also concerned with the Environment). During the current flood its crucial that NGOs like this do their duty of helping the people of Nigeria.