FEC Approves Disaster Relief Fund

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the establishment of a Disaster Relief Fund aimed at ensuring rapid response to victims of disasters across Nigeria.

This was disclosed by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, during a press briefing on Monday after the FEC meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

The fund will pool financial resources from federal, state, and local governments, as well as private sector stakeholders, to support flood victims and other disaster-affected communities.

In addition, FEC has formed a Technical Committee to review dams nationwide, with particular focus on the Alau Dam in Borno State. Recently, floods from the dam caused the deaths of many people and widespread destruction in Maiduguri, the state capital. The committee will be chaired by the Minister of Water Resources and will include other relevant officials.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian government, through the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA), has proposed the construction of five buffer dams to mitigate recurrent flooding caused by the release of water from Cameroon’s Lagdo Dam.

NIHSA also issued a warning to residents in flood-prone areas, urging them to evacuate to safer locations as flooding is anticipated following the dam’s water release. States at risk of flooding include Adamawa, Taraba, Benue, Nasarawa, Kogi, Edo, Delta, Anambra, Bayelsa, Cross River, and Rivers.

The call for relocation follows devastating floods from the overflowing Alau Dam that recently claimed over 30 lives and destroyed thousands of homes in Maiduguri.