Nigeria’s progress on inclusive disaster risk reduction under the Sendai Framework

Women and Children: Why Disaster Risk Is Not Gender- and Age-Neutral

Disasters do not affect people equally. Existing studies on gender and household food security during floods in rural Anambra State, Nigeria, gender-based violence experienced by internally displaced women in southern Nigeria, and the disproportionate impacts of disasters on women and girls demonstrate that the impacts are often disproportionately distributed according to gender and age. Women, girls and children frequently facing greater risks during and in the aftermath of disasters. This makes them particularly important groups when assessing disaster risk reduction (DRR).

The inequalities that exist between women and children on the one hand, and men, on the other can limit their access to information, income, healthcare, decision-making and other resources needed to prepare for and recover from disasters. UN Women reports that women and girls generally lose their livelihoods while remaining underrepresented in disaster risk reduction decision-making.

These vulnerabilities can become even more severe when gender, age, displacement, poverty, and geographical location intersect. For example, the challenges faced by a woman or a child living in poverty may be further intensified when they are displaced or reside in a rural area with limited access to healthcare, infrastructure, information, emergency services, and other forms of support. A 2025 study in Nigeria found that rural communities experience significant disaster impacts and have limited resources for preparing for and mitigating the effects of future disasters.

Putting Women and Children at the Centre of the Sendai Framework

The gender dimension has grown more explicit since the adoption of Sendai Framework. UNDRR's Review of Gender and the Sendai Framework identifies gender inequality as a key driver of disaster risk requiring far greater attention than it has received. The 2024 Sendai Gender Action Plan goes further, setting out 9 objectives and 33 recommended actions to promote gender equality and women's leadership across all four priorities. 

For children, the four priorities of the Sendai Framework translate into child-centred DRR: knowing which schools and health facilities are exposed to hazards; involving parents, teachers, and child protection actors in planning; investing in resilient schools and WASH systems; and ensuring early warnings and evacuation plans that children and caregivers can actually understand and act on.

Nigeria's Record: Policy vs. Lived Experience

Nigeria has made real institutional commitments. Its National Disaster Risk Management Policy published in 2018 established a framework aligned with the Sendai Framework’s priorities, and the country has since adopted a National Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction 2025–2030  developed by the Office of the Vice President, and the National Emergency Management Agency with UNDP’s support. However, the real test of these commitments lies in its implementation and lived experience during recent disasters shows how far Nigeria still has to go.

The 2022 floods affected 4.4 million people, including 2.6 million children, and displaced around 2.4 million. In Bayelsa State specifically, UNICEF reported that women and children were among those most at risk, as schools, healthcare facilities, and roads were severely damaged.

During the 2024 floods in Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) reported that over 186,000 people were affected, with women and adolescent girls making up 68 per cent of those impacted. Flooding and displacement restricted access to sexual and reproductive healthcare and heightened protection risks, a pattern UNFPA has continued to report in subsequent 2025 situation updates from the same region.

On education, UNICEF's Minimum Standards for Safe Schools assessment found that only 37 per cent of schools across the ten states assessed had functioning early warning systems, and just 14 per cent met basic safety infrastructure standards, meaning schools that should serve as havens and evacuation points for children during disasters are themselves often unprepared.

These gaps are consistent with earlier academic findings. For instance, a study on the 2012 Anambra floods found that female-headed households suffered sharper post-flood food insecurity than male-headed households, and only 22 per cent of female-headed households remained food secure afterward (versus 34 per cent of male-headed households). This evidence shows that gendered vulnerability to disasters in Nigeria is a longstanding concern, not a new one.

What Inclusive DRR Would Look Like in Nigeria

Disaster reporting should record sex, age, disability, and location alongside overall numbers of people affected. UNDRR's gender review identifies the absence of this data as a major obstacle to understanding who is actually being reached by DRR efforts.

Early warnings that reach people: 

A warning only works if it's received, understood, and actionable. Warnings should reach through channels such as SMS, radio, and trusted community channels, not just technical forecasting.

Investment in safe schools: 

With only 37 per cent of assessed schools having working early warning systems and 14 per cent meeting infrastructure standards, closing this gap should be treated as core DRR investment, not a separate education-sector issue.

Women in decision-making: 

The Sendai Gender Action Plan explicitly calls for women's leadership in DRR planning. In Nigeria, this means real participation in community disaster committees and local emergency planning, not just as aid recipients.

Equity-centred translation of UNDRR’s framework: 

Since evidence suggests that women and children face particular risks during disasters in Nigeria, implementation of the country’s National Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction should address these vulnerabilities and chart pathways to strengthen adaptive capacities for women and children.

Conclusion

Nigeria has built a real policy foundation for disaster risk reduction. The 2018 policy and the 2025-2030 National Strategy both demonstrate genuine commitment to the Sendai Framework's principles. However, the lived experience of women and children during the 2022 and 2024 floods shows that having policies on paper is not the same as protection reaching the people who need it most.

As Nigeria moves toward the Sendai Framework's 2030 deadline, the question isn't just whether the country is implementing the Framework; it's whether that implementation is reaching those who are most at risk, and whether equity is integrated into its implementation. 

Rosemary Daniella Ihinegbu is a social worker and graduate researcher at Lead City University, Ibadan, Nigeria, where she supports and advocates for inclusive social policies for women and children. As a social worker, she has led and supported projects and interventions that focused on women’s and children's rehabilitation, human rights advocacy, and trauma-informed care in government agencies and the health sector. With a background in women's entrepreneurship, she has led initiatives that empowered and supported women-led businesses.

Henrietta Chigemezu Ihinegbu is an undergraduate student and researcher in the Department of Social Work, University of Nigeria, Nsukka. As a rising social worker with a background in youth advocacy and empowerment, and climate change impact on vulnerable populations, her emerging interest has focused on equitable social policies for women and children.