The Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency, NIHSA, has expressed readiness to deepen its partnership with environmental journalists to improve public awareness on water management, flood forecasting and early warning dissemination.
The Director-General of NIHSA, Architect Umar Muhammed, stated this on Monday when the Executive Council of the Environmental Media Correspondents Association of Nigeria, EMCAN, led by its Chairman, Joycelyn Ellakeche Adah, paid a courtesy visit to the agency in Abuja.
Muhammed said the media remains an indispensable ally in translating technical hydrological information into actionable knowledge for vulnerable communities.
“The media remains an important partner in helping the agency reach vulnerable communities with timely and accurate information, particularly on early warnings and water-related risks,” he said.
He stressed that poor environmental management and poor handling of water resources could lead to serious crises.
“If you do not have good Environment and manage water resources, one day you wake up and you’d be shocked with what you see. Either you totally run out of water or you have no clean water,” he warned.
He added that contamination of streams and other water bodies through human activities could trigger water-borne diseases and other public health challenges.
“We will need an organisation like yours to interface with the public and disseminate quality information for public use,” the DG noted.
Building on the call for stronger engagement, the Special Assistant on Media to NIHSA, Mr. Yakub Aliyu, said the agency suffers low visibility despite its critical mandate.
He noted that Nigeria grapples with both extremes of water scarcity and excess water, including flooding, while pollution of water sources remains a major concern.
He therefore called for structured capacity building for journalists to equip them with the technical knowledge needed for accurate reporting.
In the same vein, the Technical Adviser to the DG, Mr. Stephen Jabo, appealed to environmental reporters to work closely with NIHSA’s press unit and participate in its programmes, particularly the Annual Flood Outlook.
“Our work on water and land management directly affects Nigerians, but remains largely unknown to the public due to inadequate publicity,” Jabo said.
Responding to the agency’s position, EMCAN Chairman, Joycelyn Adah, said environmental journalists have consistently reported NIHSA activities but are seeking a deeper relationship under the new leadership.
“As environmental journalists, we have been following and reporting the activities of NIHSA, but we want to do more,” she said.
She explained that lack of specialized training often hampers accurate reporting of technical sectors, hence EMCAN’s priority on capacity building.
“When our members understand the work first-hand, they are better positioned to tell the NIHSA story accurately and effectively,” Adah added.
“We want to intensify our work to support NIHSA to make Nigerians better understand the importance of what the agency does.”
On another note, EMCAN used the visit to formally seek NIHSA’s support for its participation in the 31st Conference of Parties, COP31, scheduled for Türkiye.
Adah said the association has commenced fundraising to facilitate its members’ participation but appealed to NIHSA to sponsor two to three members.
Responding, Muhammed said NIHSA itself is preparing to attend COP31 in collaboration with international development partners and would consider the request if opportunities arise.
“If we are able to secure quite a number of slots, why not? Definitely, it’s something that we could consider,” he said.
Both organisations expressed optimism that the visit would usher in a more sustained partnership focused on public enlightenment, early warning dissemination and improved reporting of Nigeria’s water and environmental challenges.