NEMA enforces use of life jackets in riverine communities
By Baba Alfa, Minna
To curtail the incessant boat mishaps that have reached alarming proportions, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has organised sensitisation for the affected communities with a view to minimising its hazardous impacts.
The agency has observed that boat mishaps and other hydrological hazards pose a significant threat to Nigeria's economic, social, and environmental well-being, thereby suggesting effective ways to enforce response strategies crucial to mitigating the impact of boat mishaps on communities’ livelihoods and infrastructure.
The Head of Operations, NEMA Niger and Kwara, Hussaini Isah, stated this during the stakeholders’ engagement on mitigation of frequent boat mishaps and response strategies, held at the NEMA office, Minna.
He explained that the agency called for the engagement meeting in order to foster collaboration and develop ways of reducing the risk and impacts associated with boat mishaps in Niger State.
Hussaini emphasised the need for relevant agencies to address the critical areas so as to find a lasting solution to the frequent boat accidents on the waterways, particularly the causes and smarter search and rescue of boat mishaps.
He said it has become necessary for the stakeholders to embark on continued sensitisation by promoting the use of life jackets and enforcement, sharing of responsibility, joint distribution of life jackets, and state and local government support to community leaders, among others.
He urged the stakeholders to build a more resilient Nigeria, where communities are better informed, better prepared, and better equipped to withstand and recover from any form of emergency or boat mishap incident.
Earlier, the Area Manager, National Inland Waterways Authority, in charge of Niger and Kwara states, Mr. Kakpo Adeboye, disclosed that the authority, through the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, has donated about three thousand five hundred life jackets to riverine communities in Niger State.
He regretted that the jackets have not been utilised by boat operators, leading to frequent boat mishaps and the killing of many innocent lives in recent times.
He expressed dismay that after the sharing of life jackets with the people, they usually dispose of them, saying that NIWA would stop distributing life jackets to the people.
“The impact of life jackets on the waterways is not being felt, but this time around, we are going to involve our river marshalls, emergency response team from NIWA, and supporting teams from all the relevant agencies within the state to ensure that life jackets must be used on the waterfront,” he said.