The heavy rains are here again, and there are likely incidents of a flood, according to metrological experts.

Flood loss incidents through most parts of the last three years were huge, as people lost their lives and many homes were displaced.

Therefore Flood insurance will enable businesses including farmers and communities in flood-prone arrears to recoup their investment and also get indemnified in the event of a loss.

Like last year, the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMET) issued a grim forecast. “2023 will witness an early onset of rainfall accompanied by flooding”, the agency said in its forecast published in January 2023.

“Starting in March, coastal areas in the South-South, particularly Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, and Rivers State, will experience downpours; Southern Inland cities will see precipitation in April, while central states will see rain in May”, the agency further reported.

NiMET also predicted extended rainfall in Gombe, Kaduna, Kwara, Enugu, Anambra, Ogun, and Lagos states. It said, “between June and July, the northern states of Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Kano, Katsina, Jigawa, Yobe, and Borno would experience the beginning of rain, which will peak between July and September”.

According to federal authorities, the 2022 floods resulted in 662 deaths across 33 states as the deluge of rain washed away years of investments in agriculture, hundreds of hectares of farmlands, and properties estimated at trillions of Naira. The federal government estimated that over 2 million Nigerians were displaced and that the national economy lost well over N4.2 trillion to the floods.

Tunde Hassan-Odukale, managing director/CEO of Leadway Assurance, has cautioned that Nigerian’s should not ignore the early warning forecast by the relevant weather monitoring and emergency management agencies about this year’s rainfall and flooding expectations.

He said this year’s weather forecast paints a bleak picture, especially against the backdrop of the prevailing