The National Emergency Management Agency has disclosed that the widespread flooding experienced across the country in 2023 killed 45 people and displaced 171,545 others.

A representative of the agency, Dapo Akingbade, disclosed this in Abuja on Tuesday at a monthly meeting of the Water Sanitation and Hygiene in the Emergency Working Group.

According to him, as of October 7, floods affected 13 states, with 22,666 homes partially damaged and 5,358 homes totally damaged. He said 9,179 hectares of farmlands were partially destroyed, and 8,754 hectares of farmlands were totally destroyed.

He added that the agency had commenced a thorough assessment of the flood situation in Adamawa with the activation of the emergency operation centre to coordinate interventions.

He said, “The flooding in Adamawa has impacted a lot of people and communities. At the EOC meeting, we recommended that all states activate their flood response plans.

“Also, we are also awaiting a detailed needs assessment report from Adamawa so as to know the appropriate areas to focus our attention.”

The NEMA official said there was a need for the WASH sector to be well-prepared, saying collective responsibility was needed to mitigate the impact of emergencies in the country.