Nigeria still awaits USAID’s $1m flood intervention support,’ says NEMA

Director-General, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Mustapha Ahmed, has said the agency is yet to receive the $1 million (769,500 000), earlier donated by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), as flood intervention to support flood victims in 2022. 

He made this known while fielding questions from journalists during a courtesy visit by the Zamfara state governor, Dr Dauda Lawal, to NEMA’s head office, yesterday in Abuja.

Ahmed said although the support is yet to come, the agency is nonetheless hopeful that USAID will come since it has made such commitment, even though it’s ten months down the line

” “I also read about the story in the papers last year, but I can confirm that we have not received any $1million from USAID,” the DG said.

Recall the US embassy in a statement by the US. Ambassador Mary-Beth Leonard had in October 2022, announced the donation.

The NEMA boss stated this when journalists asked to know about the funds promised and widely celebrated in 2022.

In a statement by US Ambassador I. October 2022, Mary Beth Leonard announced the donation, explaining that unusually heavy rainfall, which resulted in flooding, had affected nearly 2.8 million people across Nigeria, such that many homes were damaged or completely destroyed, displacing millions of persons, hence, the support.

The US government then said the $1 million was a fresh USAID support, which would allow local partners on the ground to provide emergency shelter assistance, relief commodities, and hygiene kits to promote safe and healthy practices amid the cholera outbreak and multipurpose cash assistance for people affected.

Part of the statement reads, “The United States, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), is providing $1 million in immediate humanitarian assistance to support the people affected by unprecedented flooding in Nigeria.”

Earlier, the DG said NEMA will be giving assistance towards alleviating the humanitarian problems caused by bandits and terrorists attacksin Zamfara state.

He assured the visiting governor of the agency’s unwavering support to victims of

He stated this when the governor of Zamfara, Dr Dauda Lawal, visited him at the headquarters of NEMA on Friday.

First, I commend the governor for appreciating NEMA for the interventions it’s been doing and I assure you that Zamfara will get all the assistance they need just like other states of the federation,” he adds.

On his part, the Zamfara state governor said he was at the NEMA headquarters to seek assistance with the Internally Displaced Persons resulting from several bandit attacks in the state.