General
NEMA, UN-OCHA to Support Communities Ravaged by Flood
By Adedapo Adesanya
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN-OCHA) has offered to collaborate with the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) toward providing support to communities affected by the 2022 floods in the country.
The Head of UN-OCHA Nigeria, Mr Trond Jensen, disclosed this during a visit to NEMA headquarters in Abuja, saying the office was prepared to support in the areas of assessment as well as information management among others.
Other areas include resource mobilisation and capacity enhancement towards building resilience in the affected communities and helping the affected persons to recover from the disaster.
In addition, he said in line with its coordination mandates, the UN-OCHA would identify and request the support of relevant agencies of the United Nations in Nigeria to also deploy available assistance to the affected communities.
However, he noted that UN-OCHA was aware of the significance of working with the relevant agencies of the Nigerian government, which NEMA had been identified as a suitable platform for the provision of aid.
Responding, the Director-General of NEMA, Mr Mustapha Habib Ahmed, appreciated UN-OCHA for the offer of assistance to the affected persons and communities ravaged by floods, while he assured of the collaboration of NEMA with the UN-OCHA.
He said, “I appreciate your continuous intervention in the prolonged humanitarian crisis in the North East region, supporting NEMA to develop a joint humanitarian action plan and capacity building for the Agency’s staff.”
“I believe that your visit today will provide us the opportunity for a greater conversation on supporting people impacted by the ongoing flood disaster and other conflicts, especially in the North West and North Central states of Nigeria.”
The recent flood disaster that has affected the entire Nigerian federation, coupled with the prolonged humanitarian crisis in the North East region, banditry in the North West and North Central states, political agitation in the South East region and environmental degradation in the Niger Delta region have no doubt created a cocktail of challenging events for NEMA and its partners.
NEMA said it is not relenting in its efforts at disaster risk management, the building of national resilience and relief service delivery for Nigerians in distress.
The current flood disaster outlook indicates that all 36 States and the FCT have been impacted. 612 persons are reported dead; 3,219,780 are affected; 1,427,370 persons are displaced and 2,776 others are injured.
A total of 181,600 houses are partially damaged; 123,807 houses are totally damaged; 176,852 hectares of farmland are partially damaged, and 392,300 hectares of farmland are totally destroyed. There is a widespread environmental dislocation.
He said NEMA has been working closely with State Governments and all relevant partners to ensure that life-saving assistance is delivered in a well-coordinated and effective manner.
“We have delivered humanitarian relief assistance in the form of food, non-food items and basic household utensils to support the efforts of state governments. So far, we have reached over 1, 427,370 displaced persons in 28 states and the FCT. The intervention is still ongoing,” he said.
He explained that NEMA has deployed its emergency response assets, including mobile water purification equipment, search and rescue boats, and Mobile Intensive Care Unit (MICUs) Ambulances, to conduct life-saving first aid and support to vulnerable populations.
“Some of the challenges we have faced include the slow movement of both human and material assets in addition to relief items due to flooded and quite often washed away roads, bridges and over issues of safety and security in some areas. Our partners in the Military Disaster Response Units (DRUs) have supported us with their air assets to conduct airdrop of relief materials in cut-away locations.
“We are looking forwards to the support of the UN-OCHA both materially and through the sharing of your vast wealth of experience in global best practices in managing complex emergencies as we are confronted with.
“I am aware that you are working towards facilitating support to NEMA through the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to aid the ongoing flood disaster relief efforts in Nigeria.”
“I once more welcome you for this very important visit which I believe will open a new vista of mutual support and collaboration between NEMA and the UN-OCHA,” the DG concluded.
By Dipo Olowookere
A $15 million debt facility has been obtained by Watt Renewable Corporation from the AfriGreen Debt Impact Fund to finance hybrid solar power plants to be built and operated by the former, especially in Nigeria.
WATT intends to use the projects to serve commercial and industrial clients in Nigeria, particularly in the telecommunication and financial services sectors.
By integrating solar hybrid solutions, the firm aims to significantly reduce diesel consumption and CO2 emissions, enabling its clients to achieve substantial energy cost savings while promoting environmental sustainability.
As a pioneer in renewable energy solutions, WATT continues to drive innovation in Nigeria’s energy sector.
The company’s robust roll-out plan includes deploying hundreds of hybrid solar power sites nationwide to meet the growing energy demands of commercial & industrial clients.
This strategic expansion aligns with WATT’s vision to revolutionize energy access across Africa, enabling sustainable development and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The funds from AfriGreen provide the critical capital needed to accelerate WATT’s ambitious projects, strengthening its market position and empowering businesses with reliable and affordable energy solutions.
Business Post gathered that to mitigate the currency risk for WATT in the event of devaluation of the Nigerian Naira, AfriGreen is offering a local currency facility that matches the payment structure of the power purchase agreements.
“We are thrilled to partner with AFRIGREEN on this transformative journey to expand reliable and sustainable energy solutions across Africa.
“With this support, it enables us to accelerate our shared mission of providing hybrid solar power to businesses, reducing carbon emissions, and supporting economic growth while enhancing energy security for our clients,” the Managing Director of WATT, Mr Oluwole Eweje, said.
“We are delighted to support WATT in rolling out hundreds of hybrid sites across the country.
“This represents another key transaction for AFRIGREEN in Nigeria. The combination of high energy prices, good solar irradiation, and strong demand from industrial and commercial energy users makes this market particularly attractive for companies like WATT.
“By leveraging these favourable market conditions alongside WATT’s exceptional operational performance and a well-structured financing solution, we are setting the stage for a strong and lasting business partnership,” the Managing Director of AfriGreen, Mr Alexandre Gilles, stated.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has denied issuing a directive that gas supply to power generating companies (GenCos) be halted.
In a statement on Wednesday, the authority also denied instructing wholesale gas suppliers to stop further supply of gas to companies due to failure in payment obligations.
The NMDPRA described reports stating that it has directed the stoppage of gas supply to GenCos over N2 trillion debt as “false and completely unfounded”.
“It has absolutely no bearing on the information shared at a recent stakeholders’ engagement held in Lagos between the Authority, the OPTS, IPPG and other stakeholders in the oil and gas industry,” the NMDPRA said.
“The purpose of the engagement was to sensitise stakeholders on the requirements, opportunities and benefits associated with the implementation of the wholesale supply license as provided by sections 142 and 197 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.
“It was a follow-up to an earlier stakeholder engagement held at the NMDPRA corporate headquarters in Abuja on November 27, 2024.
“The Authority wishes to reassure all our stakeholders and indeed the general public that at no time was the false statement made at that event and anywhere else, and are advised to completely disregard the publication as every effort is being made to ensure that the supply and distribution of natural gas and petroleum products to end users is seamless and unabated as we head into the festive season and indeed all through the coming year 2025.”
Recall that Nigeria’s national grid experienced another collapse on Wednesday, the 11th time in 2024 as Gencos couldn’t generate enough power, compounding issues facing the Nigerian power sector.
This was the first time in over a month as the last time the nation witnessed a nationwide shutdown in electricity supply was on November 7, 2024.
Before then, the country was experiencing an incessant collapse of the grid, which prompted the federal government to set up a team to address the issue.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Nigeria is currently experience a cut in power supply after the national grid collapsed for the 11th time in 2024.
This is the first time in over a month as the last time the nation witnessed a nationwide shut down in electricity supply was on November 7, 2024.
Before then, the country was experiencing an incessant collapse of the grid, which prompted the federal government to set up a team to address the issue.
However, just when Nigerians were thinking they will not witnessed another national grid collapse in the year, it issue reared its ugly head again.
On Wednesday afternoon, most of the energy distribution companies suffered power outage, prompting them to inform their customers of the situation.
One of the DisCos, Ikeja Electric Plc, in a message to electricity consumers under its franchise area, said, “Please be informed that we experienced a system outage today, December 11, 2024, at about 13:32 hours affecting supply within our network.
“Restoration of supply is ongoing in collaboration with our critical stakeholders. Kindly bear with us.”
Recall that on Tuesday, in a report, Google listed national grid as one of the top trending searches by Nigerians this year.
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