The Nigerian Institutions Of Civil Engineers (NICE) Abuja chapter has emphasized that climate change presents significant and multifaceted threats to Nigeria’s present and future development. This concern was raised during the 2023 Abuja Civil Engineering Conference, organized by NICE Abuja Chapter, with the theme ‘Resilient Cities: Engineering For Climate-change Adaptation and Mitigation’.
Engr. Chijioke Anyabolu, the chairman of NICE, emphasized the need for cities in Nigeria to become resilient, capable of absorbing, recovering, and preparing for future shocks, whether economic, environmental, social, or institutional. He pointed out that climate change is increasingly becoming a serious challenge to Nigeria’s socio-economic development, with evident impacts including drought, food scarcity due to irregularities in rainfall, and flooding.
Anyabolu highlighted the alarming rates at which climate disasters are occurring in Nigeria, citing statistics from 2022 where flooding alone resulted in significant loss of life, displacement, and property damage.
Engr. Virgilus Chukwudi Ezugu, the National Chairman of NICE, called for increased professional engineering training to address the challenges posed by climate change. The guest speaker at the conference, Prof. Toochukwu Chibueze Ogwueleka, stressed the imperative of harnessing engineering expertise to build cities that are both resilient and sustainable. He underscored that climate change is an undeniable global reality driven largely by human-induced greenhouse gas emissions, and its impacts will profoundly affect urban spatial patterns, growth, and development. The concentration of population in cities, while offering opportunities, also heightens vulnerabilities to natural hazards, civil strife, and climate change impacts.
