Nigeria - Floods Response: Flash Update 2 (Last Updated: 1 November 2022)

HIGHLIGHTS

• The number of people affected by widespread flooding across Nigeria has risen to over 3.2 million, with over 600 fatalities. Over 1.4 million people are displaced. Thirty-four of the country’s 36 states have been affected.

• Over 569,000 hectares of farmland have been destroyed or damaged by floods ahead of the October harvest season and may aggravate already alarming food insecurity.

• The International Federation of the Red Cross/Red Crescent (IFRC) has issued a Floods Emergency Appeal of CHF 13 million (US $13 million) to provide clean water, emergency shelter and cash to half a million people in several states.

• Access remains a challenge in some affected areas and some isolated communities can only be reached by boat, delaying the response.

SITUATION OVERVIEW

Nigeria has experienced heavy rains and devastating floods that have caused loss of life, population displacement and extensive destruction of houses, farms, and infrastructure. Since July, over three million people have been affected in 34 states in the worst flooding the country has seen in over a decade. At least 603 people have died and over 2,400 have been injured. According to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), over 1.4 million people have been displaced due to the floods as of 24 October.

Reports so far indicate that over 300,000 houses have been destroyed or damaged. In addition to losing shelter, hundreds of thousands of people have had their livelihoods and access to food compromised. An estimated 569,251 hectares of farmland has been damaged, leaving households unable to cultivate their crops and resulting in loss of food source and income.

The flooding has occurred during a severe cholera outbreak that has killed more than 465 people and affected over 18,000 others in 31 states since January. Floods increase the transmission of water-borne and vector-borne diseases, such as cholera, malaria and typhoid fever. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), flooding and security concerns have led to reported population movements from places with cholera outbreaks to places not yet affected, increasing the risk of further spread of the disease.

According to NEMA, over 1.3 million people need assistance. As the waters are slowly receding, the priority will be to help people recover what is left of their homes and to regain lost assets and livelihoods. Immediate humanitarian needs include shelter, clean drinking water, and livelihood support, including seeds, farming tools and cash assistance.