By Kazeem Waris
The Federal Government has begun moves to operationalize Nigeria’s 112 national emergency number, directing key security, health and emergency-response agencies to develop a unified roadmap for its nationwide rollout.
Vice President Kashim Shettima gave the directive yesterday at a stakeholders’ meeting on the National Emergency Number 112 Project in Abuja, where he charged participating agencies to work out the operational framework and standard operating procedures for consideration by the National Economic Council, NEC.
The committee comprises the Nigeria Police Force, NPF; Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC; National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA; Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC; and other relevant agencies.
The development follows NEC’s recent approval of 112 as Nigeria’s single, universal toll-free emergency number, replacing the multiple emergency lines operated by different agencies.
The initiative is aimed at giving Nigerians a single access point for urgent assistance during security incidents, road crashes, fires, medical emergencies and other life-threatening situations.
Shettima urged the committee to draw from global best practices in developing the roadmap, stressing that the project must move quickly from planning to implementation.
“Let’s make progress so that whatever time we have spent here is worth spending. And most importantly, the engine is finance. It is resources to drive the process. And I want to assure you that we will get the resources,” he said.
The Vice President directed the stakeholders to finalize the roadmap and standard operating procedures for formal endorsement by NEC, assuring them of government support once the implementation framework becomes clear.
The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Rilwan Disu, said the Police fully supported the adoption of 112 as Nigeria’s unified emergency number.
According to him, the initiative would give citizens a simple and reliable channel for accessing emergency services regardless of the nature of the incident.
“For a citizen facing an armed attack, accident, fire outbreak, medical emergency, kidnapping, or any other life-threatening situation, while the first challenge is to determine which agency to call, one number should provide access to the appropriate response,” Disu said.
Earlier, the Personal Assistant to the President on e-Governance in the Office of the Vice President, Mrs Lydia Aina, said Nigeria’s emergency-response system was currently spread across several agencies, systems and jurisdictions.
She said the objective was to move from fragmented emergency response to a coordinated and eventually integrated national framework.
Aina said the stakeholders’ meeting was focused on building the system required to make 112 effective, including the people, agencies and standards needed to ensure that citizens receive appropriate assistance when they dial the number.
“Our job now is to turn it into an actual working programme with milestones. So, we have identified six immediate priorities. First, governance. We need a clear structure of who’s responsible for what,” she said.
Other stakeholders who pledged their support included the Director-General of NEMA, Mrs Zubaida Umar; Corps Marshal of FRSC, Shehu Mohammed; and Director-General of the National Orientation Agency, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu.
The stakeholders are expected to harmonize their roles, establish response protocols and produce the implementation framework required to make 112 a functional nationwide emergency-response system.
