The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) says 2,430,445 people were displaced by the 2022 flood disaster that ravaged different parts of the country.

Mustapha Ahmed, NEMA’s director-general, said this at the opening of a one-week strategic executive course for Nigeria’s emergency management stakeholders on Monday in Abuja.

“Records indicate that 662 persons have lost their lives, 3,174 others have suffered an injury, and 2,430,445 individuals have been displaced by the floods,” he said.

Mr Ahmed added, “Thousands of houses, hectares of farmlands and several critical national assets were destroyed by the raging floods.”

The course had as participants heads of state emergency management agencies and heads of NEMA’s zonal, territorial and operational offices, among other partner agencies.

Mr Ahmed said the capacity building training was expedient when the country was recovering from the impacts created by the 2022 flood disaster.

He added that the training, which would afford the participants to share their experiences, would also provide an opportunity for them to develop holistic approaches to disaster and crisis management in the country.

“NEMA, in collaboration with state governments and other partners, are currently working assiduously towards the long-term recovery of impacted communities across the nation,” he said.

The director-general also called on the participants to cascade the new ideas learnt to their states and local emergency management committees to prepare early against future flood disasters.

Musa Zakari, the Director, Human Resource Management, NEMA, said that the training was apt as it would assist in re-examining a new and efficient approach to disaster management.

Abbas Idriss, the director-general, FCT Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), who spoke on behalf of the participants, appreciated NEMA for organising the training.

The training had experts from the Bournemouth University Disaster Management Centre, UK, as resource persons.

(NAN)