FG Moves to Make 112 Single Gateway for Emergencies Nationwide… Shettima orders roadmap, SOPs for unified emergency response

The Federal Government has stepped up efforts to make 112 Nigeria’s single nationwide emergency number, directing relevant agencies to develop a comprehensive roadmap for its full operationalisation.

Vice President Kashim Shettima gave the directive on Tuesday in Abuja at a stakeholders’ meeting on the National Emergency Number 112 Project, charging participating agencies to develop a clear implementation framework based on global best practices.

The directive follows the recent approval by the National Economic Council (NEC) of 112 as Nigeria’s universal toll-free emergency number, replacing the various emergency lines currently operated by different agencies.

Under the proposed system, Nigerians would be able to dial one number to access the appropriate emergency response in situations including armed attacks, road crashes, fire outbreaks, medical emergencies, kidnapping and other life-threatening incidents.

To drive the process, the Federal Government constituted a committee comprising the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and other relevant agencies.

The committee is expected to finalise the operational roadmap and standard operating procedures for presentation to the NEC for formal endorsement.

Shettima stressed that the committee must make tangible progress, assuring stakeholders that funding would be made available once the implementation framework is clearly established.

“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,” the Vice President said.

The Inspector General of Police, Olatunji Rilwan Disu, expressed the full support of the Nigeria Police Force for the adoption of 112 as the country’s unified emergency number.

Disu said the initiative would give citizens a simpler and more reliable means of obtaining emergency assistance, particularly at moments when they may be unable to determine which agency to contact.

According to him, a person confronted with an armed attack, accident, fire outbreak, medical emergency or kidnapping should not be burdened with identifying the appropriate emergency agency before seeking help.

“While the first challenge is to determine which agency to call, one number should provide access to the appropriate response,” he said.

Also speaking, the Personal Assistant to the President on e-Governance in the Office of the Vice President, Lydia Aina, said Nigeria’s emergency response system currently involves multiple agencies, systems and jurisdictions, resulting in fragmentation in the way emergencies are received, coordinated and handled.

She said the government’s objective was to transition from the existing fragmented system to a coordinated and eventually integrated national emergency response framework.

Aina said the success of 112 would depend not only on the number itself but also on the people, agencies, standards and systems supporting it.

“Our job now is to turn it into an actual working programme with milestones,” she said, identifying governance as one of six immediate priorities.

She explained that the government would need to establish a clear structure defining the responsibilities of each agency involved in the emergency response chain.

Other stakeholders who pledged their agencies’ support for the initiative included NEMA Director-General, Zubaida Umar; FRSC Corps Marshal, Shehu Mohammed; and Director-General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Lanre Issa-Onilu.

The Federal Government said the operationalisation of 112 is expected to reduce delays and bureaucratic bottlenecks in emergency response while providing Nigerians with a more accessible and coordinated channel for obtaining urgent assistance.