The National Economic Council has approved N83.2 billion for the Anticipatory Action Task Force to fund early interventions against flooding and other climate-related emergencies ahead of the 2026 rainy season, marking what officials described as a historic departure from the country’s long-standing practice of waiting for disasters to occur before mobilizing resources.
The approval, made at the 158th NEC meeting chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima, represented half of the N166.42 billion that had been requested for disbursement through the Federation Account Allocation Committee mechanism to designated implementing agencies and beneficiaries. Cross River State Governor Bassey Otu, who briefed reporters after the meeting, said the council chose to approve the lower figure to align with available resources while establishing the framework for additional disbursements as flood threat assessments were completed.
Otu described the decision as a significant shift from reactive to preventive disaster management, noting that Nigeria had historically mobilized response after floods had already inflicted damage on communities, agricultural land, and infrastructure. He said the council was determined that this pattern had to change and that beginning the process of proactive intervention, even at half the requested scale, established the foundation for a more systematic national approach.
NEC also received a presentation on the proposed National Regional Development Policy 2026-2030, a framework for promoting balanced and inclusive development across Nigeria by providing strategic oversight for regional development commission programs, coordinating development master plans in collaboration with state governments, and aligning regional investments with the administration’s priorities in economic growth, food security, energy, infrastructure, education, and the digital economy. The council directed the Minister of Regional Development to circulate the draft to state governors for review and input, and to consult the Nigeria Governors’ Forum to secure broad sub-national participation before the policy was finalized.
Shettima used the occasion to deliver a broader message about the administration’s expectations of what NEC’s work must produce, saying the council’s performance would ultimately be judged not by the quality of its plans but by visible changes in the lives of farmers, manufacturers, vulnerable citizens, unemployed young people, and the children who would inherit the country. He said Nigeria could no longer afford to export raw materials while importing finished prosperity, and pledged to confront the logistical and compliance barriers preventing Nigerian farm produce from reaching international markets.
