Analysis of Vulnerability to Flood Disaster in Kano State, Nigeria

This study assesses the vulnerability of households to flood in Kano state, Nigeria, using questionnaires survey, infrastructure analysis and flood impact information of the most recent flood disaster collected by the Federal and State agencies responsible for disaster management. The survey covered households in areas that had experienced heavy damage (Zone 1), medium (Zone 2) and light damage (Zone 3). One hundred and fifty respondents from each zone were interviewed in face-to-face interaction between March and April 2013. The questionnaire explored household characteristics before and after the flood disaster, different coping mechanisms and analysis of infrastructures such as schools, roads, bridges, hospitals and markets. The human security index was used to determine the time a household will need to recover from property damage. To determine the strength of resilience of each of the zones, the coping strategy with the highest score were summed up and then divided by the total number of indicated coping measures in each zone to obtain an index of the relative strength of coping measures at each zone. A vulnerability index was also calculated for each zone. The results indicate variations between the zones in coping strength and vulnerability which implies varying local coping capacities. The study recommends the need to collect more baseline data on vulnerability to flood at the local level which will ease preparedness and management of flood disaster in the state