The National Emergency Management Authority (NEMA) has disclosed that Nigeria suffered an economic loss estimated at N2.6 trillion to the flooding that ravaged 23 states of the federation in 2012.

The NEMA Coordinator for the South West, Mr Iyiola Akande who disclosed at a workshop in Ibadan on Tuesday, said that a total of 363 deaths were recorded in the gory inciden that displaced a total number of 2.1 million people when 5,970 houses were submerged in the 256 Local Government Areas of the country where the flooding incident took place.

Addressing stakeholders on how to ensure prevention of flooding, using the predictions of NIMET at the South-West Zonal Awareness Flood Campaign Towards Early Warning and Early Action for MDAs, NGOs, CBOs and FBOs Level of Preparedness of States in the South West, he said that the workshop was coming at the backdrop of the public announcement of NIMET'S Seasonal Rainfall Prediction (SRP) early in the year.

While noting that the prediction painted a more serious picture of what the nation should expect this year 2013 when compared to the devastating effect of the 2012 flood that ravaged about 23 states of the Federation, the NEMA chieftain enjoined all and sundry to take preventive measures to guard against being caught in the web.

He, however commended the efforts of  the various governments across the six states of the South West for the great works that they are carrying out to safeguard the lives and property of our people.”

His words:  “A testimony of this show of concern to the welfare of the people is the fact that the 2012 flooding that seriously impacted the lives and livelihoods of above 23 states across the country did not seriously affect the people of the South West.  That is not because the rains were not as heavy here, but because of remedial measures already put in place by the various governments to control the situation.” Oyo State Commissioner

for Environment and Habitat, Mr. Lowo Obisesan, while declaring the workshop

open saluted NEMA for being proactive through the interactive session just as

he noted that with a lot of efforts on the part of all the stakeholders,

flooding would not only be controlled but prevented.

The commissioner who was represented by the Permanent Secretary in the

Ministry, Mrs. Modupe Omonigbehin stated that “if we are all ready to give what it takes, if rivers and streams are allowed to go through their channels

without obstruction, we can be rest assured that flooding would be prevented”. Participants at the workshop were drawn from the entire states in the South West zone including Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo States.