Abuja, Oct. 22 (BNA): Ocheiga Enoch is not expecting much of the rice crop from north-central Nigeria after flood waters inundated his fields and the fields of many other farmers this season.
Many in Benue State — known as the country’s “food basket” — are now finding themselves in the unusual position of scavenging for seedlings in preparation for next year’s planting season at a time when they should harvest the current crop, according to the Associated Press (AP) reported.
“The kind of suffering we are going through right now is horrific,” Enoch said of the floods, which are the worst in Nigeria in more than a decade after killing more than 600 people and forcing 1.3 million to flee their homes.
Above-average rainfall and devastating floods have affected 5 million people this year in 19 countries in West and Central Africa, according to a new report by the United Nations World Food Program.
In Chad, the country’s government this week declared a state of emergency after floods affected more than a million people there.
“This climate change disaster is one of the most severe the region has known in years, serving as a misery multiplier for communities already struggling to keep their heads above water,” said interim Chadian leader Mohamed Idriss Deby Itno.
The disaster has now exacerbated the fate of this Central African country, which is already in a food crisis, said Chad Mbendangro Analyst Deurnode Adelef.
Nigeria has recorded at least 600 deaths while authorities in neighboring Niger say at least 192 people have died there as a result of the storms, either from collapsed homes or from drowning in flood waters.
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) warned in a statement on Friday that the floods had already led to a “significant increase in cases of cholera and other preventable diseases in Nigeria,” and called for more resources to scale up its response.
Experts point to unusual rainfall and the failure of governments to create early warning systems to better prepare for extreme weather events.
Ibrahim Raji, a climate researcher who focuses on the region, said the floods in West Africa were “largely due to government neglect of environment-related issues such as climate change over a period of time”. Raji added that the situation “is boiled down to the government’s reluctance to address environmental issues.”
Chi Lyle, a spokeswoman for the United Nations World Food Program in Nigeria, is concerned about the “alarming harvest season ahead”.
Kabir Ibrahim, the national president of the local farmers’ association, said some farmers have lost nearly 75% of everything planted this year.
The damage caused by floods in Nigeria also extends to livestock in areas such as Bayelsa State, where Innocent Alu said he lost nearly 10,000 birds on his poultry farm to the floods, most of which died from waterborne diseases.
“I feel like I’m running away — no one can think right,” the devastated Allu said over the phone, estimating his losses at 30 million naira ($68,600).
In neighboring Niger, tens of thousands were displaced by floods in the Maradi and Zinder regions, damaging many homes and farmland.
It is a similar tale in Cameroon where flood waters caused extensive damage in the northern region, destroying crops and homes.
“This year’s rainfall is exceptional,” said Kosoma Laba, a climate specialist in Cameroon. “There has been continuous rain since the beginning of the season, from August and September to October now, the rain continues.”
Experts fear that damaged farmland will increase food prices at a time when inflation rates are already at record levels – Nigeria and Ghana at 20.7% and 37%, respectively.
And in Nigeria, the World Food Program said it was providing emergency aid in Yobe State, one of the worst-hit places. But the agency spokeswoman said the agency urgently needs $129 million to support its operations in Nigeria over the next five months.
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