Feature/OPED
Now That There Is No Immediate Threat of Floods in Nigeria
By Jerome-Mario Chijioke Utomi
Seemingly good news came recently the way of Nigerians living in the flood-prone areas of the country. The message, which was from the new Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof Joseph Utsev, among other remarks, stated that ‘there is no immediate threat of flooding in the country.
Utsev, who spoke to newsmen in Abuja on Friday, explained that the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA) had observed an increase in the volume of flow along the River Benue system, registering a flow level of 8.97 meters today. This, he said, was insignificant, as compared to a flow level of 8.80 meters on the same date in 2022, noting that reports from inland dams, including Kainji, Jebba, and Shiroro, also showed a consistent flow regime.
While this piece of information is celebrated, one vital question crying for an answer is: What are the tiers of government in Nigeria currently doing/ appropriate measures to ensure preparedness to minimize the potential impact of flooding during the peak of the rainy season?
The above poster becomes well appreciated when one remembers that last year (2022), raving floods which lasted over two months reportedly hit parts of Nigeria; according to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), about 2.5 million persons were affected and over 603 persons killed by the flooding. Within the period under review, houses and farmlands were submerged in Lagos, Yobe, Borno, Taraba, Adamawa, Edo, Delta, Kogi, Niger, Plateau, Benue, Ebonyi, Anambra, Bauchi, Gombe, Kano, Jigawa, Zamfara, Kebbi, Sokoto, Imo, Abia States, and the Federal Capital Territory.
Without any shadow of a doubt, flooding, as noted in a similar piece in the past, is a natural disaster. A natural disaster, going by information available at Wikipedia, a global information power horse, is “the negative impact following an actual occurrence of natural hazard in the event that it significantly harms a community”. A natural disaster can cause loss of life or damage property and typically leaves some economic damage in its wake. It includes events such as a flood, earthquake, or hurricane that causes great damage or loss of life’.
However, while Wikipedia’s intention for classifying flood as a natural disaster is understandable and commendable, some questions immediately come to mind as to whether the series of floods that ravaged communities, villages, towns and cities in the past truly qualifies as an act of God/natural disaster. In the applied sense of the word, it cannot, in all honesty, be qualified as a natural disaster or an Act of God and even though it has taken a great toll on Nigeria and its economy,
Aside from the lackadaisical attitude displayed over the years by both past and present Governments, the above opinion is predicated on the mountains of early warning signs which ought to have activated some remedial measures but was not hearkened to by any of the tiers of government.
In 2012, for example, when the flood of unimaginable magnitude and volume first occurred, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (GEJ), as he then was, during a visit to flood victims in Lagos, promised to create an artificial/dry lake to contend with future surge in flood. As at the time of leaving office in May 2015 (that was three years after the promise was made), not even a pit was dug.
Between 2015 and now, President Muhammadu Buhari, who succeeded former President Jonathan, did next to nothing to resolve the issue of flooding in the country.
Let’s assume that he (Buhari) lacks the needed leadership and creative prowess to generate ideas in this direction. One should have expected him to, at the very least, implement/execute the proposed Dam in Adamawa state, as suggested years ago, to take care of flood eventualities. After all, leadership is a continuum. There is also a saying that if you cannot create, copy!
The truth is that we failed as a nation in all these directions, and therefore, we lack the moral justification as a nation to describe flood as an unexpected occurrence.
But instead of doing the needful, we fail in our responsibility as a nation and attribute the same failure to God. What has happened in the past as it relates to flooding were totally, squarely and completely leadership failures. It is a sign of an absence of foresighted leadership in the country. It tells a story of people whose poor leadership has drained their rational will, a nation devoid of proactive leadership but filled with sets of reactors masquerading as leaders.
Fundamentally, the inability of the government to manage the flooding in the country all these years further serves as proof that ‘poverty of our leaders certainly does not mean material poverty, but lack of commitment to duty, lack of vision and greediness characterized by corruption’. That is the only possible explanation. If not poor leadership, how do we explain the fact that each year, the three tiers of government periodically gather to share the National Ecological Funds and yet cannot tackle the issue that is as simple as a flood?
For a better understanding of the argument, the ecological fund was established in 1981 through the Federation Account Act 1981, on the recommendation of the Okigbo Commission, Decree 36 of 1984 and 106 of 1992, as well as the allocation of Federation Account modification order of 2002 subsequently modified the act. The prime objective of this initiative was to have a pool of funds that would be solely devoted to the funding of ecological projects to ameliorate serious ecological problems nationwide. This is at variance with the practice elsewhere in the world where funds are set aside, especially for natural disasters.
In the United States, for example, there are at least four major pieces of Federal Legislations enacted for this purpose: the Water Quality Act of 1965, the Water Pollution Control Act and its amendment of 1972(PL92 500), the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1976 (PL 94 800), The Toxic Substance Control Act of 1983 (PL 94 469) and Comprehensive Environmental Response. Compensation and Labiality Act of 1983 (CERCLA) (PL96 510).
These laws all make provisions for funding and other facilities for the protection, monitoring and remediation of polluted aquifers. The funds are additional to the existing periodic statutory allocation to the United Environmental Protection Agency and are also readily accessible to local governments and individuals. Looking at the above explanation will elicit the question as to why ecological funds are not readily available for use in a period such as this. As the flood rages, the question that is as important as the flood itself is: What is the nation doing to prepare for the next one because we know that it will happen again in the near future?
Finally, even as Nigerians continue to celebrate the cheerful from the Minister that there is no threat to lives and properties, especially those states that are contiguous to Rivers Niger and Benue, this piece, on a final note, calls on relevant agencies of all the three tiers of government in Nigeria, particularly the flood-prone states such as Delta, Kogi and Bayelsa, among others, to ensure preparedness and deploy appropriate measures to minimize the potential impact of flooding during the peak of the rainy season.
Nigerians, on their part, must unlearn the ‘culture’ of indiscriminate waste disposal and, in its place, imbibe the tradition of organized waste management. Non-Governmental Organizations and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) should, as part of their Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR), train Nigerians on waste-to-wealth practice.
These are little efforts that will produce great results.
Utomi is the Programme Coordinator (Media and Public Policy) at Social and Economic Justice Advocacy (SEJA). He writes via [email protected]
Nigeria’s financial services industry stands at a decisive crossroads as technology leaders prepare for the January 1, 2027, data residency deadline set by the Central Bank of Nigeria. The regulatory mandate requiring all payment transaction records, customer personally identifiable information (PII), and account ledgers to reside within domestic data centres is forcing a structural re-evaluation of banking IT architectures. For executive teams across the country, navigating this transition without interrupting daily banking operations is becoming the ultimate test of leadership.
For years, the industry’s reliance on foreign hyperscale providers delivered quick elasticity and global tools. However, transferring entire production stacks – encompassing real-time transaction processing, API gateways, and fraud scoring engines – back to local infrastructure requires significant engineering effort. With the country handling billions of electronic transactions annually, CIOs are seeking to preserve system uptime while severing deep operational dependencies on foreign data centres.
Experts have opined that the core challenge confronting financial technology teams is the lack of empirical, vendor-neutral benchmarks for domestic cloud platforms. Evaluating whether local data centres can sustain mission-critical financial traffic requires rigorous stress testing rather than relying on theoretical SLAs. The risk of potential downtime during a live migration makes vendor vetting the most crucial phase of the compliance roadmap.
To mitigate these operational risks, infrastructure partners like MTN are mobilising domestic capacity and technical insights tailored for the financial sector. By offering sovereign cloud solutions and collaborative engineering frameworks, MTN is helping CIOs and startups navigate the migration path with minimal disruption. Their localised infrastructure serves as an operational bridge, providing the uptime and data sovereignty assurances that both institutions and regulators require.
Lynda Saint-Nwafor, the Chief Enterprise Business Officer for MTN Nigeria, put it succinctly when she explained the upside of hosting data locally: “Hosting locally means lower latency, faster response times, and compliance with Nigeria’s data regulations. More importantly, it gives Nigerian businesses control, keeping sensitive financial, health, and government data within national borders.”
As the January 2027 benchmark approaches, the metric for success will depend on technical execution and operational discipline across companies.
By Osasikemwen Ighile
For many Nigerian families, the summer holiday is a season of fun, relaxation, and spending quality time together. But with the kids at home, more outings, higher electricity consumption, and extra entertainment costs, it’s also a period when expenses can quietly pile up.
The good news? You don’t have to choose between making memories and managing your finances. With a few smart habits, you can enjoy the holidays while keeping your savings goals on track.
Here are five practical ways to save smarter this summer.
1. Ditch Cash and Spend Smarter
Ever noticed how cash disappears faster than you expected? Whether it’s buying snacks for the kids, paying for transport, or making quick market runs, spending cash can make it difficult to track where your money goes.
Using a debit card can make it easier to track transactions and monitor spending. FairMoney customers can use their debit card for eligible transactions, subject to applicable terms and conditions. You can make payments conveniently at stores, shop online, and easily monitor your transactions. Instead of carrying cash everywhere, you get a clearer picture of your expenses and can avoid unnecessary impulse purchases.
Small changes like this can make a big difference over the course of the holiday.
2. The Kids Are Home—Stay Ahead of Your Utility Bills
School holidays often mean one thing: the TV is almost always on. From cartoons in the morning to football matches in the evening, your cable subscription becomes more important than ever. Add fans, air conditioners, gaming consoles, and other appliances, and it’s easy to see why electricity bills tend to increase during this period.
Rather than waiting until services are disconnected, planning and paying bills on time help households avoid unnecessary late-payment or reconnection charges. FairMoney customers can pay eligible bills and services through the platform, subject to applicable terms and service availability. You can conveniently pay for Cable TV subscriptions, Electricity bills, Internet subscriptions, Airtime and data for the entire family.
Paying bills on time can help reduce the risk of late payment consequences or applicable reconnection charges. Summer is filled with birthdays, outings, family visits, and spontaneous spending. While these moments are worth enjoying, your savings shouldn’t take a holiday.
3. Enjoy the Holidays—but Don’t Pause Your Savings
A simple strategy is to save first before spending. FairMoney customers can also use eligible savings products, such as FairSave and FairTarget, to set aside money towards specific financial goals, subject to the applicable product terms, conditions and eligibility requirements, even if it’s in small amounts. Already planning for the next school term? FairMoney customers can also use eligible savings products, such as FairSave and FairTarget, to set aside money towards specific financial goals, subject to the applicable product terms, conditions and eligibility requirements. Already planning for the next school term? Consider setting aside money regularly towards your school-fee goal. FairTarget can be used to help you organise savings around specific financial goals, subject to the applicable product terms, conditions and eligibility requirements. By starting early and saving consistently, you can better prepare for school-related expenses when the new term begins.
4. Plan Weekly Family Activities Instead of Daily Spending
The holidays don’t have to be expensive to be memorable. Instead of spending money every day on outings, cinemas, or restaurants, create a simple weekly activity plan. One weekend could be a family movie night at home. Another could be a picnic in a nearby park, a cooking competition, indoor games, or a visit to relatives.
Planning activities ahead helps you control spending while still giving everyone something to look forward to. Sometimes, the best memories cost very little.
5. Buy Household Essentials in Bulk
With everyone at home, groceries seem to disappear twice as fast. Instead of making frequent trips to the store, which often lead to impulse purchases, consider buying regularly used items in bulk.
Depending on the retailer and quantity purchased, some household essentials may offer better value when purchased in bulk.. You’ll spend less on transportation, reduce unplanned shopping, and avoid running out of important items.
Summer should be about creating happy memories not financial headaches. By spending more intentionally, paying your bills on time, planning ahead, and staying committed to your savings goals, you can enjoy everything the season has to offer without putting unnecessary pressure on your finances.
A few smart habits today can make the months ahead much easier. And that’s a win for every household.
Osasikemwen Ighile is the Brand Manager for FairMoney Microfinance Bank
Feature/OPED
Beyond the Screen: How Sports and Entertainment Keep Nigeria’s Economy Moving
When we talk about Nigeria’s economy, the conversation usually centres on oil and gas, banking, agriculture, manufacturing and technology. But there is another industry quietly creating jobs and driving economic activity: entertainment and sports. Most times, we only see the finished product. We watch the show, cheer during the match and move on to the […]
When we talk about Nigeria’s economy, the conversation usually centres on oil and gas, banking, agriculture, manufacturing and technology. But there is another industry quietly creating jobs and driving economic activity: entertainment and sports. Most times, we only see the finished product. We watch the show, cheer during the match and move on to the next thing. What we do not always see is the amount of work that happens before those moments reach our screens.
Take Big Brother Naija
When viewers tune in and see the housemates moving around the Big Brother house, it is easy to forget that the house itself is a product of many people’s work. From the interior designers and set builders who create the spaces to the electricians, carpenters, painters and technicians who bring them to life, an entire team works behind the scenes before the first episode even begins.
Once the cameras start rolling, the list gets even longer. Producers, directors, camera operators, sound engineers, editors, stylists, makeup artists, caterers, production assistants and security personnel all have a role to play. Then there is everything that happens outside the house. Publicists, photographers, videographers, digital teams, content creators and media platforms all contribute to keeping the conversation going. The housemates may be the faces audiences remember, but they are only one part of a much bigger entertainment ecosystem.
Sports have a similar impact
When the Super Falcons play a major game, the focus is naturally on the players and what happens on the pitch. But outside the stadium, the game can mean business for viewing centres, food vendors, restaurants and bars. Sports analysts and commentators have more to cover, content creators have something new to create around and businesses selling jerseys and football merchandise get an opportunity to make sales.
A major sporting event can turn an ordinary evening into a busy one for businesses that have little to do with what happens on the pitch. That is the part of sports and entertainment that is easy to overlook. The value is not only in the stars we see or the content we consume. It is also in the network of people whose skills and businesses keep these industries moving.
And this is where DStv and GOtv become an important part of the picture. They do more than give audiences access to the shows, matches and moments they care about. They connect the people producing this content with millions of viewers who keep the industry going.
Every time someone tunes in to Big Brother Naija, follows the Super Falcons or settles in for a major sporting event, they are engaging with an industry that supports producers, creatives, technicians, businesses and other professionals.
The impact of sports and entertainment, therefore, goes beyond what happens on the screen. By bringing some of the biggest entertainment and sporting moments to Nigerian audiences, DStv and GOtv help keep this ecosystem active, visible and working. Because sometimes, when we sit down to watch, we are not just consuming entertainment. We are also supporting an industry that provides jobs.
