Create dedicated disaster fund – Stakeholders tell Yobe assembly
Create dedicated disaster fund – Stakeholders tell Yobe assembly
Stakeholders on Friday urged the Yobe state assembly to create a dedicated fund for disaster management in order to strengthen the state’s resilience to floods, drought and other climate hazards.
They made the appeal during a 3-day workshop on Disaster Risk Reduction financing, organised by the Yobe State Emergency Management Agency (YOSEMA), in partnership with Plan International Nigeria.
The workshop brought together officials from the state Ministry of Finance and Budget, members of the state assembly, civil society organisations and media influencers.
Dr Muhammed Jalo, the Director of Search and Rescue at YOSEMA, stressed the need for the state to move away from ad-hoc emergency releases.
“There is an urgent need to institutionalise disaster risk financing rather than relying on ad-hoc emergency funds after crises occur,” Jalo said.
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Mr Mathew Aliyu of Plan International Nigeria’s Zurich Climate Resilient Alliance said domestic funding was very critical for the sustainability of disaster management.
Meanwhile, participants discussed budget advocacy, analysis of past disaster spending and the role of the legislature and CSOs in securing predictable funding.
They insisted on the importance of proactive investment in resilience, which saves lives, adding that it was more cost-effective than a reactive approach, which usually delays response to disasters.
