Personnel of the Nigerian Navy attached to its Hydrographic Office in Lagos on Saturday trooped our enmasse to carry out a clean up exercise within its vicinity in Apapa.
The clean up exerciseIt was learnt was part of the Navy’s Civil-Military relations activities initiated to ensure that the environment where the Hyrdographic Office is located are kept clean and to mitigate flooding, while enhancing the cleanliness of the area.
Speaking during the event, Navy Captain Mark Abashi, the Assistant Director, Administration and Survey of Nigeria Navy Hydrography Office said “Apapa as it is, normally experience flooding and the Chief of Naval Staff pointed it out in his strategic directives given in 2023 that units should carry out activities to mitigate effects of climate change
“Nigerian Navy Hydrographic office thought it wise to clear drainages to a enable free flow of water into the harbour channel which probably is due to the effects of Climate change that we are having recently.
“Also, the Nigerian Navy Hydrographic office is located in a structure here in Apapa which is over 60 years and the office has lived happily with the members of the community and it was this premise that the Chief of Naval Staff directed that we should carry out clearance of the gutters to enable free flow of the water.
Also, he said, that the Navy has improved the security network in Apapa area, explaining that, “people are happily doing their business. The office also improved traffic control and Apapa is safe for business and for people to live.”
While explaining the work of the Hydrographic Office, Navy Capt Abashi said that the Nigerian Navy Hydrographic Office (NNHO) plays a crucial role in ensuring safe navigation in Nigeria’s vast maritime domain.
He said: “Being an agency tasked with dredging of Nigerian Maritime Environment, the Chief of Naval Staff under the Leadership of Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ikechukuwu Ogalla and the entire Navy community in tune with the effects of Climate change, ascendency of sea level rise and also human activities that have caused disruption to the ecosystem.
Nigerian Navy is charged with the Hydrographic and oceanographic survey of it’s Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) and by extension, it’s Extended Exclusive Economic Zones (EEEZ)
As a nation with a coastline stretching over 850 kilometers along the Gulf of Guinea, Nigeria’s maritime security and economic prosperity heavily rely on the work of the NNHO.
One of the NNHO’s primary responsibilities is to produce nautical charts and publications that provide accurate and up-to-date information to mariners, enabling them to navigate safely in Nigerian waters.
The NNHO maintains and manages aids to navigation, such as lighthouses, buoys, and beacons, which are essential for guiding vessels along Nigeria’s coast and ports. It also provides tidal and current predictions, vital for efficient port operations, coastal engineering, and safe navigation.
