NIGERIA LAUNCHES NATIONAL MASS FATALITY RESPONSE PLAN
The Federal Government, through the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), has officially launched Nigeria’s first comprehensive National Mass Fatality Response Plan, a landmark initiative aimed at revolutionizing how the country handles large-scale disasters involving loss of life. The plan was unveiled on Tuesday by NEMA Director General Zubaida Umar, who hailed it as a transformative tool to restore dignity to disaster victims and coordinate emergency responses across all levels of government.
According to Umar, the response plan was developed through months of consultation with domestic and international stakeholders, including the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). She emphasized that Nigeria’s previous responses to mass casualty incidents had been marred by confusion, lack of preparation, and inadequate logistics, often compounding the trauma of survivors and communities.
“This is not just about handling the dead; it is about doing so with compassion, organization, and respect,” she said, while showcasing the plan’s structure, which includes guidelines for initial response, victim recovery, mortuary services, identification, and respectful disposition of remains.
Assistant Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps, Hyginus Omeje, used the occasion to highlight the staggering rate of road accident fatalities in the country. He revealed that over 5,400 Nigerians died in road crashes in 2024 alone, surpassing all recent natural disaster-related deaths combined. He called for an urgent national emergency declaration on road safety and stronger collaboration among stakeholders.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the ICRC both pledged support for the rollout and refinement of the plan, which will be implemented nationwide from 2025 to 2029 and subjected to periodic review. Associate Professor Chukwuemeka Nwafor from the University of Uyo, who helped develop the plan, emphasized its emphasis on incident command structures and the integration of a national deceased persons registry as part of the plan’s long-term framework.
