Expert Calls for Stronger Laws to Tackle Recurring Flooding in Ekiti

A water resources management expert, Michael Ale, has called for a stronger institutional framework to address the recurring flooding in Ekiti State, including legislation to enforce urban planning and environmental regulations.
Ale, Coordinator of the Global Development Initiative, attributed the persistent flooding to what he described as weak institutional mechanisms for enforcing regulations and sanctioning violations.
He urged the Ekiti State House of Assembly to enact a Flood Resilience and Urban Planning Enforcement Law to strengthen flood prevention measures and improve compliance with environmental and urban planning rules.
The call followed flooding recorded in parts of the state, particularly Ado Ekiti, the state capital, last week. The flooding reportedly caused loss of lives and property while disrupting socio-economic activities.
In a statement issued in Ado Ekiti on Wednesday, Ale said the state urgently needed a stronger institutional framework to tackle the recurring problem.
“Flooding in Ado Ekiti is predictable. NIMET predicts it. The rivers are known, the causes are known – building on waterways, blocked drains, no dredging before rainy season, refuse in canals. If it is predictable and preventable, why does it happen yearly? It is because we have no institutional framework that enforces consequences,” he said.

Ale also called for the establishment of a dedicated waste management institution with powers to sanction indiscriminate dumping of refuse in drainage channels.
He further advocated an emergency management institution supported by a functional early warning system to improve the state’s preparedness for flooding and other environmental emergencies.
The expert noted that Ekiti State’s 30-year Development Plan already identifies flood control, sustainable urbanisation and environmental resilience as key priorities.
However, he questioned the effectiveness of monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for ensuring that the plan’s objectives are implemented.
“We should adhere to such a plan so that as we develop, we do not disrupt channels that protect us from floods. Our government should be proactive in this matter,” Ale said.
He specifically urged the state House of Assembly to pass legislation that would make annual dredging of the Ureje and Elemi rivers mandatory before March, establish 50-metre no-build buffer zones and criminalise construction without drainage clearance.
Ale also proposed the creation of a committee of experts to develop a comprehensive long-term strategy for addressing flooding across the state.
He cited Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, as an example of a city where government intervention followed severe flooding, saying Ekiti could similarly seek external assistance.
“Ekiti State can do the same. Let us ask for meaningful intervention,” he said.
The proposed measures, according to Ale, would combine stronger enforcement, improved drainage management, waste control, early warning systems and long-term planning in an effort to reduce the impact of recurring floods across Ekiti State.