In Nigeria, as part of a global study on effective law and regulation for disaster risk reduction, a National Law Desk Survey on Law and Regulation for the Reduction of Risk from Natural Disasters, was finalised in 2012. Further, a workshop on Strengthening Legal Frameworks for Disaster Response and Risk Reduction was held in 2015, aimed at building the capacity of Nigerian Red Cross Society staff and promoting awareness among key stakeholders on the tools available to enhance legal preparedness.
Between 2019 and 2020, a desktop mapping of Nigeria’s legal framework on international disaster response was conducted, using the Checklist on the Facilitation and Regulation of International Disaster Relief and Initial Recovery Assistance (the IDRL Checklist). This activity formed part of a larger exercise to map the International Disaster Response Law (IDRL) frameworks within the African region, to identify and analyse the legal and policy arrangements for international disaster response across the continent.
In 2023, the Disaster Law team supported the Nigeria Red Cross Society (NRCS) in the development and potential signing of a national pre-disaster agreement. The first step to achieve this milestone came in the form of a high-level stakeholders meeting hosted by the NRCS. This meeting created the platform for relevant stakeholders and public authorities to engage on the importance of a pre-disaster agreement. Participants to this meeting were able to map a way forward and further engagements concerning the signing of the agreement will be held in 2024.
