The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has stressed the need for stronger coordination in disaster response among federal, state, and local government levels.
South-South Zonal Coordinator of NEMA, Eric Ebhodaghe, said in Port Harcourt on Friday that states and local governments must strengthen their emergency structures to ensure effective management.
He explained that while NEMA serves as the federal coordinating body, State Emergency Management Agencies (SEMAs) are expected to replicate its functions at the state level, and Local Government Emergency Management Committees (LGEMCs) should mirror SEMA’s efforts within communities. Disaster response, he said, should start locally, with LGEMCs as first responders, supported by SEMAs, while NEMA intervenes when states are overwhelmed.
Ebhodaghe expressed concern that some states do not have functional SEMAs and rely entirely on NEMA. He urged state governments to establish and empower SEMAs with proper legal backing, stressing that disaster management is a joint responsibility and cannot be left to NEMA alone.
(NAN)