Flood risks are considered as one of the most devastating natural disasters. Presently, flooding occurs in all the ecological zones in Nigeria which has been linked to global warming. In Lagos Megacity, the incidence of flooding is now a reoccurring decimal which is only an indication of the failure of the existing mechanism for flood risk reduction. Knowledge of public perception of flood risk is considered a crucial element for a proactive preparedness for flood risk reduction. This study is aimed at gaining insight into the public perception of flood risks for proactive flood risks preparedness among residents in flood prone areas in Lagos megacity, Nigeria. The survey research design was utilized. Data were collected by questionnaire from residents of flood prone neighbourhoods in the city. The results show high awareness of flood risks among respondents that have experienced flooding previously than respondents that have not experienced flooding in the past. It also reveals poor preparedness among respondents that have not experienced flooding. The paper calls for public awareness creation among residents in flood prone areas of the city as a strategy to promote preparedness for flood disaster risks reduction in the city.

The imperative of knowledge based and inclusive development is making universities to realign their teaching and research missions to embrace community engagement. Using case studies of three universities in Nigeria, this paper examines how different types of Universities in Nigeria carry out community engagement and the nature of the benefits that accrues from the engagement. It also analyses the existing university policy framework with respect to university community engagement with a view to identifying the effectiveness of these policies in engendering university-community engagement in Nigeria. The findings revealed that the emerging policy to support community engagement at the universities does not provide for adequate framework to engender an effective university-community engagement. Besides, the reward systems of the universities do not support community engagement as a valid form of scholarship. Most of the university engagements are formal engagements with little or no link to immediate local communities. There is the need for a policy re-orientation that first integrates the principles of infusion model as a framework of the university community engagement policy. Secondly, the university community engagement policy must reward and recognize community engagement as a valid kind of scholarship among academics. This is a sine qua non in increasing university contributions to the development of their immediate communities.

Changes in climate have caused impacts on natural and human systems. These impacts affect poor people's lives through impacts on livelihoods and the destruction of homes. In Delta State, Nigeria, the impacts of climate change are real. Adaptation has been identified as the key to reducing the impacts of climate change. However, successful adaptation depends on use of climate services. While climate services are essential to adaptation, the services do not always reach the users who need it most. This chapter analyzes factors influencing access and utilization of climate services in Delta State. The chapter utilizes the survey research while data were analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. Findings show a low utilization of climate service. The determinants of access and utilization of climate services include income, educational attainments, access to ICT facilities, extension agents, and the level of local climate variability. The chapter calls for awareness creation on the importance of climate services.

No abstract

No abstract