NEMA activates emergency operations centre for 2026 flood response

The National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, has activated its National Emergency Operations Centre, NEOC, to strengthen preparedness, monitoring and response to flooding across Nigeria during the 2026 rainy season.

NEMA Director-General, Zubaida Umar, announced the activation on Tuesday while inaugurating members of the NEOC team at the agency’s headquarters in Abuja.

Mrs Umar said the activation of the centre was part of proactive measures aimed at improving emergency preparedness and ensuring effective coordination among relevant stakeholders throughout the flood season.

She charged members of the team to demonstrate diligence, professionalism and proactiveness in carrying out their responsibilities, describing their role as critical to the effective management of flood-related emergencies nationwide.

The NEMA chief stressed that information generated and disseminated by the centre must be accurate, timely and reliable to support effective decision-making and efficient disaster management.

“Information generated and disseminated from this centre must be factual, timely, and reliable to support effective decision-making and efficient management of disasters,” she said.

Mrs Umar noted that credible and timely information was essential for early action, the rapid deployment of relief materials and the protection of vulnerable communities from flooding and other climate-related hazards.

She added that effective information management would help safeguard lives, livelihoods and critical infrastructure threatened by floods and other extreme weather events.

Responding on behalf of the team, NEMA’s Deputy Director of Planning, Research and Forecasting, Tony Ephraim, pledged the members’ commitment to continuous monitoring and effective information management.

Mr Ephraim assured the Director-General that the team would maintain rigorous data collection, analysis and reporting to support prompt decision-making and coordinated emergency response efforts.

“We will sustain round-the-clock monitoring and ensure robust data analysis to support timely decision-making and coordinated national response efforts,” he said.

The NEOC will serve as the central operational hub for monitoring flood developments, coordinating intelligence sharing and strengthening collaboration among disaster management agencies and other relevant stakeholders.

The centre is also expected to enhance national preparedness and response mechanisms throughout the 2026 flood season.

NAN