Evaluating the Effects of Flooding in Nigeria
CHAPTER ONE
Aim and Objectives
The aim of this study is to assess the effects of flooding in Nigeria, it evaluates the flood menace in some communities in Anambra state with a view to adduce solutions for sustainable development in these communities.
Objectives
- To examine the socio-economic activities of the inhabitants of the study area;
- To determine the incidence of flood in the communities study areas
- To determine the socio-economic effects of flooding in the communities study area; and,
- To determine coping strategies for resilience adaptation to flooding incidents in the study area.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
The Concept of Sustainable Development
Sustainable Development is a complex and multifaceted term. The concept has evolved to become well established as the most powerful and pervasive tool for reconciling and achieving a balance between the economic, social, and environmental dimension (Hall, 2006). According to the report “Our common future” by Ms. Harlern Brundtland, sustainable development is defined as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (WCED, 1987). A good understanding of this concept is of critical importance in the contemporary world due to the fact that developing countries that suffer from resources constraints are often forced to divert their vital resources from ongoing development activities to relief and rescue operations that can sometimes set back the hand of development by as much as a decade (Hall, 2006).
Floods constitute a major natural hazard that are increasingly resulting to disasters; exerting a heavy toll on the occupants of floodplains and their economic activities thereby impoverish the affected communities and causing retardation of sustainable development. Therefore, to establish an environment that will foster sustainable development, it is imperative to incorporate integrated flood management principles since inappropriate flood management strategies pursued over the years in Nigeria and Awka have been largely reactive in response to flood threats rather than proactive (flood control) rather than (flood management).
Douglas (2010) assessed urban pluvial flooding; a qualitative case study of causes, effects and non-structural mitigation. The study focused on the causes, effects and the management of flooding in Heywood, Greater Manchester, in 2004 and 2006. The study revealed that, the victims of the floods were unprepared, ill-informed and confused as to their responsibilities before, during and after the flood event. The study suggested the establishment of integrated flood management and adaptation strategies supported by flood experts within the communities.
Floodplains have been the most preferred place for socio-economic development in many countries as well as coastal areas and deltas even though living on a floodplains exposes its occupants to flooding. The societies, communities and households seek to make the best use of this natural resources and assets available to them in order to improve their quality of life. The evidence worldwide shows that people will not – and – in certain circumstances cannot abandon flood prone areas whether they are in the sparsely populated floodplains of the Mississippi, among the Mountains or Honduras or in the Mountains populated deltaic regions of Bangladesh. There is a need therefore, to find ways of making life sustainable in the floodplains even if there is considerable risk to live and properties.
Internationally through regional and global conferences such as the World Commission on Environment and development (WCED, 1987), the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD, 2002), the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (UN, 2002) and others, it has been recognized that mitigating the adverse effects of floods is one of the essential components of sustainable development.
Integrated Flood Management in the Study Area
Traditionally in Nigeria, flood management has focused on reactive approaches. It is widely realize that a paradigm shift is required to move from flood control management to integrated flood management-from defensive to proactive action towards a culture of prevention and managing the risk of flooding.
Integrated flood management therefore, aimed at maximizing the benefits of floodplains and at the same time reducing loss of lives, addresses flood vulnerability and risk through preventive measures while preserving the ecosystems and their associated biodiversity.
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY AND PROCEDURES
TYPES OF DATA
It is useful to distinguish between two types of variables (Data): qualitative and quantitative . Each is broken down into two sub-types: qualitative data can be ordinal or nominal, and numeric data can be discrete (often, integer) or continuous.
SOURCES OF DATA
Data from both secondary and primary sources was used in this study.
SECONDARY SOURCES
These comprised data that were obtained from already existing information on population census, 2006 and flood menace such as previous research work, newspaper publications, local and international journals, books, maps, paper presentations from seminars, workshops and other useful data that will help in the course of this research.
PRIMARY SOURCES
Primary data were used to collect information through the use of questionnaire survey.
Questionnaire: A structured questionnaire was extensively used in the study areas to collect a large volume of primary data and through this methods, vital information needed for the actualization of the aims of the study was obtained. The information includes age, education background, income, occupation, socio-economic activities, and flood incidence amongst others.
SAMPLE SIZE AND SAMPLE TECHNIQUES
POPULATION
The National Population Commission of Nigeria 2006, Federal Government Official Gazette figure for Awka is 167,303.
The Awka’s population using Malthus exponential model is pt+n=pt (1+n)n = 167.303(1+0.25)8 = 167.303(1.218403) = 203,842. Therefore, the total population for the area of study, Awka as projected will now be 203,842 populations.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS
This chapter presents the data collected during the field work in order to show the various responses and the opinions to the variables in the questionnaires by the respondents in the communities study area. This data would further be analyzed and the findings revealed.
DATA PRESENTATION
Questionnaires administration was used to generate primary data that are used for this study. Table 6.0.1 below shows that a total of 400 copies of questionnaires were administered/distributed within ten (10) communities which is the study location that comprises Awka. A total of three hundred and eighty-one (381) copies representing 95.5% of the total questionnaires were retrieved from the respondents.
A breakdown of the figure shows that 37 copies of the questionnaires representing (8.8%) of 35 copies of the questionnaires distribution in Ezi-Anam community were returned. 40 copies of the questionnaires representing (9.5%) of 38 copies of the questionnaires distributed in Ifite-Anam community were returned. 40 copies of the questionnaires representing (9%) of the 36 copies of the questionnaires distributed in Inoma community were returned. 50 copies of the questionnaires representing (12.8%) of 51 copies of questionnaires distributed in Nzam community were returned. 35 copies of the questionnaires representing (8.5%) of 34 copies of the questionnaires distributed in Olumbanasa community were returned. 42 copies of the questionnaires representing (10.3%) of 41 copies of questionnaires distributed in Oroma-Etiti community were returned. 37 copies of the questionnaires representing (9%) of the 36 copies of the questionnaires distributed were returned. 37 copies of the questionnaires representing (8.8%) of 35 copies of the questionnaires distributed in Umueze-Anam community were returned. 39 copies of the questionnaires representing (9.5%) of the 38 copies of the questionnaires distributed in Umuenwelum-Anam community were returned. and lastly, 39 copies of the questionnaires representing (9.3%) of 37 copies of the questionnaires distributed in Owelle community were returned. The 95.5% of success achieved in sampling is very good for this study.
CHAPTER FIVE
RECOMMENDATION AND CONCLUSION
Recommendations
Based on the findings of this study, the researcher recommends possible solutions that would accommodate structural and non-structural measures to minimizing flood problems observed in the study area for sustainable development. Therefore, the following measures are recommended:
- There is need for repair and construction of new drainage system in the study area to accommodate storm water flows,
- From the study, construction of artificial channels to divert part of water discharge during flooding is essential in mitigating the effects of this flood menace,
- Adequate machinery should be put in place to ensure corruption is eradicated completely so that the relief and support send to the areas affected will work efficiently in alleviating the socio-economic effects of flooding,
- Dumping of waste indiscriminately should be a great offence with high fines, and the local government authorities should make provision for proper waste management schemes for public use,
- Government at various levels and NGOs should set up various information programmes to educate the public on dangers of flooding and encroachment on floodplains or river valley.
CONCLUSION
Flood menace has associated diverse effects both in developed and developing countries. These effects such as socio-economic devastation, property loss, environmental degradation, health issues and untimely death can be reduced if properly managed by adopting integrated flood management for sustainable development when dealing with flood issues.
Also, the above stated measures could be adopted so as to have flood free environment and to achieve a safe, conducive, pleasant, aesthetic environment for living and working conditions.
It seems increasingly accepted (although not consistently implemented) that flood incidents shouldn’t be dealt with through humanitarian relief interventions alone as revealed in this study. There is some evidence to support the argument that flood incidents in communities, Awka, just like in other parts of Nigeria, should shift away from this traditional response approach to focus on addressing the socio-economic effects of flooding and causes of people’s vulnerability to flood menace in order to mitigate its effects by build community resilience for sustainable development.
REFERENCES
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