The Renevlyn Development Initiative (RDI) has condemned the failure of Nigeria’s emergency response agencies following the collapse of the Alau Dam in Borno State, which has led to severe flooding in Maiduguri. The disaster, which submerged thousands of homes and displaced residents in multiple communities, has been linked to what the RDI described as a “total disconnect” between federal and state emergency agencies.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, September 10 in Lagos, RDI pointed out that the floodwaters had been rising for about a week, culminating in the dam’s collapse on Tuesday, which inundated 70% of the Borno State capital. Affected areas include Fori, Galtimari, Gwange, Bulabulin, and other nearby communities. The flooding has destroyed homes, including the palace of the Shehu of Borno, government facilities, and even led to a jailbreak and the escape of animals from the Sanda Kyarimi Park zoo, with 80% of the zoo’s animals reported dead.
Philip Jakpor, Executive Director of RDI, criticized the federal and state governments for ignoring earlier warnings from the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NIMET) and the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA).
“Maiduguri may just be the starting point,” Jakpor warned. “We had raised concerns multiple times about the poor response to perennial flooding. The federal and state governments collected about N40 billion in Ecological Funds this year alone, yet this disaster was completely avoidable. The government’s failure is even more glaring because this happened in Maiduguri, the state capital. If this had been in remote communities, it would have received much less attention.”
Jakpor added that the collapse of the dam did not happen overnight and that effective flood management could have prevented the catastrophe.
“With the intense rains, proactive management would have released water gradually to prevent the breach. Instead, the alarm was only raised when the situation was already critical,” he said.
Jakpor also called for accountability, stating that individuals or groups responsible for failing to act should be held to account. He expressed frustration over the lack of coordination between the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and its state counterparts, saying, “Unfortunately, all we see is these agencies scrambling to distribute palliatives after disasters that could have been prevented.”
He urged other states to learn from this tragedy and take preemptive measures, warning that the Niger Delta region, in particular, is at risk of even larger floods.
“The Alau Dam collapse is a tragedy that could have been avoided. Until we take serious steps to address the impact of climate change, we will continue to suffer avoidable economic and human losses,” Jakpor concluded.