Diversity, Inclusion and Efficient Disaster Risk Reduction in Nigeria: An Analytical Approach to the Intersection
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.68050/JAMS.2026.749Keywords:
disaster risk reduction; diversity and inclusion; intersectionality; vulnerability; Nigeria; internally displaced persons; Sendai FrameworkAbstract
Nigeria's exposure to recurrent flooding, drought and desertification, violent extremism, farmer–herder conflict, epidemics, oil pollution and building collapse has made disaster risk reduction (DRR) an urgent governance priority. Yet the country's DRR architecture — anchored in the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) Act of 1999, the National Disaster Management Framework (2010), the National Disaster Risk Management Policy (2018) and the recently launched National Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction (2025–2030) — has been slow to translate the inclusion commitments of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 into disaggregated data collection, participatory planning and differentiated response. This paper develops an analytical framework for understanding how diversity — of gender, age, disability, ethnicity, religion, and socio-economic and geographic position — intersects with disaster vulnerability and response effectiveness in Nigeria. Drawing on intersectionality theory (Crenshaw, 1989, 1991), the Pressure-and-Release model of vulnerability (Wisner et al., 2004) and the Social Vulnerability Index tradition (Cutter et al., 2003), the paper synthesises institutional, humanitarian and academic evidence — including national statistics from NEMA and the National Bureau of Statistics, displacement data from the International Organization for Migration's Displacement Tracking Matrix and the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, and case evidence from the 2012 and 2022 floods and the North-East insurgency-displacement crisis — to argue that exclusion is not incidental to Nigerian disaster outcomes but a structural driver of them. The paper concludes that efficient DRR in Nigeria requires moving from formally inclusive policy language to operational inclusion: disaggregated risk data, representation of marginalised groups in disaster governance structures, and resourced, accountable implementation at the state and local levels.
References
1. Adamu, F., Musa, B., & Lawal, T. (2024). Exploring sexual and reproductive health needs, barriers, and coping strategies of internally displaced women of reproductive ages in north-central Nigeria: A qualitative analysis. BMC Women’s Health.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11623787/
2. Africa Center for Strategic Studies. (n.d.). The growing complexity of farmer-herder conflict in West and Central Africa. https://africacenter.org/publication/growing-complexity-farmer-herder-conflict-west-central-africa/
3. Al Jazeera. (2025, September 19). ‘We will stay’: Displaced Nigerians fear Boko Haram as camps close.
4. Assessment Capacities Project [ACAPS]. (2022, October 21). Briefing note: Nigeria—Country-wide flooding.ReliefWeb.
5. Collins, P. H. (2015). Intersectionality’s definitional dilemmas. Annual Review of Sociology, 41(1), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-soc-073014-112142
6. Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex: A Black feminist critique of antidiscrimination doctrine, feminist theory and antiracist politics. University of Chicago Legal Forum, 1989(1), 139–167.
7. Crenshaw, K. (1991). Mapping the margins: Intersectionality, identity politics, and violence against women of color. Stanford Law Review, 43(6), 1241–1299. https://doi.org/10.2307/1229039
8. Cutter, S. L., Boruff, B. J., & Shirley, W. L. (2003). Social vulnerability to environmental hazards. Social Science Quarterly, 84(1), 242–261. https://doi.org/10.1111/1540-6237.8402002
9. Disability Justice Project. (2024). Forgotten people. https://disabilityjusticeproject.org/news/forgotten-people/
10. Echendu, A. J. (2022). Flooding in Nigeria: A review of its occurrence and impacts, and mitigation strategies. Applied Water Science.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00207233.2022.2081471
11. Foreign Affairs. (2019, January 23). The deadly conflict between cattle herders and farmers in Nigeria. https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/nigeria/2019-01-23/deadliest-conflict-youve-never-heard
12. France 24. (2021, April 28). Nigeria’s farmer-herder conflict. The Observers.
https://observers.france24.com/en/africa/20210428
13. Global Voices. (2026, February 17). Nigeria confronts growing climate risks with rising droughts, heatwaves, and flooding. https://globalvoices.org/2026/02/17/nigeria-confronts-growing-climate-risks-with-rising-droughts-heatwaves-and-flooding/
14. HelpAge International. (n.d.). Why older people are overlooked in humanitarian aid. https://www.helpage.org/news/why-older-people-are-overlooked-in-humanitarian-aid/
15. Human Rights Watch [HRW]. (2022, November 2). “Those who returned are suffering”: Impact of camp shutdowns on people displaced by Boko Haram conflict in Nigeria.
16. Ibrahim, S., Abubakar, Z., & Yusuf, H. (2022). Sexual and reproductive health context of an IDP camp in northeastern Nigeria. PLOS ONE. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9580675/
17. Integrated Regional Information Networks. (2012, November 9). Nigeria floods 2012 [as reported by the National Emergency Management Agency]. ReliefWeb.
18. Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre [IDMC]. (2023). Global report on internal displacement 2023. https://www.internal-displacement.org/global-report/grid2023/
19. Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre [IDMC]. (2025). Global report on internal displacement 2025.
20. Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre [IDMC]. (2026). Disaster displacement risk in Nigeria. https://api.internal-displacement.org/sites/default/files/publications/documents/2026-idmc-disaster%20displacement%20risk%20in%20Nigeria.pdf
21. International Organization for Migration [IOM]. (2024). Displacement Tracking Matrix Nigeria, Round 49 (October–November 2024). https://dtm.iom.int/nigeria
22. Kileo, S., & Mensah, R. (2025). Beyond institutional silos: Rethinking multilevel disaster risk governance in Africa a decade into the Sendai Framework implementation. International Journal of Disaster Risk Science. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13753-025-00646-1
23. Mavhura, E., Manyena, B., & Collins, A. E. (2017). An approach for measuring social vulnerability in context: The case of flood hazards in Muzarabani district, Zimbabwe. Geoforum, 86, 103–117. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2017.09.008
24. National Bureau of Statistics [NBS], National Emergency Management Agency [NEMA], & United Nations Development Programme [UNDP]. (2023). Nigeria flood impact, recovery and mitigation assessment report 2022–2023. https://www.nigerianstat.gov.ng/download/1241417
25. National Emergency Management Agency [NEMA]. (1999). National Emergency Management Agency (Establishment) Act.
26. National Emergency Management Agency [NEMA]. (2010). National disaster management framework.
27. National Emergency Management Agency [NEMA]. (2018). National disaster risk management policy. https://nema.gov.ng/documentations/National%20Disaster%20Risk%20Management%20Policy.pdf
28. Nigeria Info FM. (2025). Falling walls, failing standards: Nigeria’s 50-year battle with building collapses. https://www.nigeriainfo.fm/news/homepage/falling-walls-failing-standards-nigerias-50-year-battle-with-building-collapses/
29. PM News Nigeria. (2026, April 1). NEMA records sharp decline in 2025 flood casualties. https://pmnewsnigeria.com/2026/04/01/nema-records-sharp-decline-in-2025-flood-casualties/
30. Punch. (2025, January 2). Lassa fever, cholera, others killed 952 in 2024–NCDC.
https://punchng.com/lassa-fever-cholera-others-killed-952-in-2024-ncdc/
31. Punch. (2025). Building collapse deaths rise to 1,595–Report. https://punchng.com/building-collapse-deaths-rise-to-1595-report/
32. Refworld. (2021). Nigeria: National Policy on Internally Displaced Persons. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. https://www.refworld.org/policy/strategy/natlegbod/2021/en/124154
33. Taiwo, O., & Olaniyan, A. (2025). Violent herder–farmer conflicts and human security in Nigeria. Development in Practice. https://doi.org/10.1080/09614524.2025.2573963
34. UN Women. (n.d.). Intersectionality. Women, Peace and Security and Humanitarian Action Knowledge Hub. https://wrd.unwomen.org/practice/topics/intersectionality
35. UN-SPIDER. (n.d.). Nigeria National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA). https://un-spider.org/nigeria-national-emergency-management-agency-nema
36. United Nations Children’s Fund [UNICEF]. (2023). Nigeria 2022 flood response brief, August 2022–June 2023.
37. United Nations Development Programme [UNDP]. (2022, March 25). Nigeria’s disaster risk management: Why women must lead the way. https://www.undp.org/africa/press-releases/nigerias-disaster-risk-management-why-women-must-lead-way
38. United Nations Development Programme [UNDP]. (n.d.). National strategy for disaster risk reduction (2025–2030). https://www.undp.org/africa/publications/national-strategy-disaster-risk-reduction-2025-2030
39. United Nations Environment Programme [UNEP]. (2011). Environmental assessment of Ogoniland. https://www.unep.org/topics/disasters-and-conflicts/country-presence/nigeria/environmental-assessment-ogoniland-report
40. United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction [UNDRR]. (2018). Dhaka Declaration 2015+ on disability and disaster risk management.
41. United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction [UNDRR]. (n.d.-a). Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030.
https://www.undrr.org/publication/sendai-framework-disaster-risk-reduction-2015-2030
42. United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction [UNDRR]. (n.d.-b). Disability inclusion in disaster risk reduction.
https://www.undrr.org/partners-and-stakeholders/disability-inclusion-disaster-risk-reduction
43. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs [OCHA]. (2022, November 1). Nigeria floods response: Flash update 2. ReliefWeb. https://reliefweb.int/report/nigeria/nigeria-floods-response-flash-update-2-last-updated-1-november-2022
44. United Nations. (n.d.). Empowering displaced women, girls and persons with disabilities in North-East Nigeria. https://nigeria.un.org/en/179048
45. Wisner, B., Blaikie, P., Cannon, T., & Davis, I. (2004). At risk: Natural hazards, people’s vulnerability and disasters (2nd ed.). Routledge.
46. World Bank & Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery [GFDRR]. (n.d.). Inclusive disaster risk management: What have we learned? https://blogs.worldbank.org/en/sustainablecities/inclusive-disaster-risk-management-what-have-we-learned
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Author(s)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Articles published in the Journal of Advanced Multidisciplinary Studies (JAMS) are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), unless otherwise stated. Authors retain copyright of their work and grant JAMS the right of first publication.
