A Nation Swallowed by Neglect
If you have ever driven from the South to Abuja, you have likely crossed the Lokoja Bridge which is the convergence point of two of Africa’s greatest rivers, the Niger and the Benue. But this bridge is also a monument to an ongoing national tragedy. In 2012, raging waters completely swallowed it. That year, 363 Nigerians lost their lives, and over two million people were forced out of their homes in what was then the worst flooding the country had seen in over 40 years, affecting 30 of Nigeria’s 36 states.
The True Source of the Surge
While it is easy to blame nature, the devastating floods destroying Nigerian communities do not actually begin inside Nigeria. They originate in neighboring Cameroon at the Lagdo Dam. When Cameroon opens the dam’s gates to release excess water, billions of cubic meters surge downstream straight into Nigeria.
The most damning part of this recurring nightmare is that the Nigerian government has known this would happen for over four decades.
- In the 1970s, Nigeria and Cameroon reached a bilateral agreement regarding the management of these waters.
- Cameroon fulfilled its end of the bargain by building the Lagdo Dam, which it completed in 1982.
- Nigeria promised to build its own shock-absorber dam, the Dasin Hausa Dam, just downstream to absorb the inevitable overflow and protect its citizens.
- While Nigeria started construction, a 1983 military coup brought the project to a sudden halt, and it was entirely abandoned.
Why the Waters Will Keep Rising
Today, every rainy season when Cameroon legitimately releases water from Lagdo, there is absolutely nothing on the Nigerian side to stop it. As a result, Nigerian communities continuously pay the ultimate price for a dam that has been promised since 1982 but remains unbuilt.
This disaster repeated itself with even greater ferocity in 2022, with water levels rising even higher than in 2012. Yet, the political establishment continues to turn a blind eye, enabling reckless urban planning. Buildings continue to be erected along floodplains without proper design, geotechnical surveys, or flood management plans—only to eventually sink into the ground. When you build without asking what happens when the water comes, the water will inevitably arrive to give you the answer. Gbaam!
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