Before The Flood, For Once

Every year, we go through the same ritual. The rains come. The rivers rise. The Lagdo Dam in Cameroon opens its gates because it always opens its gates, usually without adequate warning, and the communities downstream drown. We count the dead, we count the displaced, we count the houses swallowed by water, and then government officials arrive in SUVs with relief materials and promises. The camera rolls. Statements are issued. And then we wait for next year to do it all over again.
This has been Nigeria’s flood management strategy for as long as most of us can remember. It has been reactive, performative, and completely inadequate.
So when the National Economic Council last Thursday ap...