The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has said it has upgraded its North Central Zonal office to a Directorate for speedy response to emergencies and disasters.
The Director, North Central Zone of the agency, Mr. Bashir Idris, disclosed this when he paid a courtesy visit to Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago of Niger State at the Government House in Minna on Monday.
He explained that the North Central Zonal Office was upgraded to a Directorate to do away with bureaucracy in responses to emergencies and disasters.
“There is a deliberate strategy to unbundle the agency so that it can be free from bureaucracy, the former North zonal office has been upgraded to a directorate.
“Bureaucracy will be kept aside henceforth and issues of emergency will be treated with dispatch, we are here to keep you abreast of this development,” he said.
Idris acknowledged that Niger State was being challenged with flood, boat mishap and banditry, adding that plans were underway to organize a workshop for affected states on managing mishap.
He pointed out that most problems associated with boat mishaps and attendant fatalities was because most institutions were morribund in the discharge of their duties
He said the inland waterways, Marine Police and people using boats to convey passengers and goods were not regulated, thereby resulting in large numbers of casualties whenever there is mishap.
He thereby appealed that the state government come up with a law to mandate that anyone using waterways as means of transportation must have a life jacket.
Responding, Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago said there was need for the agency and the state government to safeguard emergency relief items and ensure their timely distribution to the people.
He said all efforts were on to address issues of banditry, adding that most communities have been relocated to high ground and plans were underway to domesticate the National inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) bill into law.
The governor added that government had procured and got donations of life jackets and have deployed them to people, stressing that most boat mishaps was as a result of overloading.
