The Effect of Media Campaign and Environmental Education on Flood Control in Osun State, Nigeria

Abstract:

According to a report by the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET), Osun State was identified as one of the flood-prone areas and the residents believe that the government should have been proactive to avert this occurrence. It is expected that relevant government agencies and policy makers would be well prepared to respond adequately to the incidence of flood in their area following the release of the outlook. To achieve this, media campaign and environmental education are suggested to be veritable tools to combat incessant flooding in Nigeria, Osun State in particular. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the effect of media campaign and environmental education on flood control and sustainable development in Osun State. Hence, to achieve this, quantitative survey research method was employed for this study and the data used were collected through administered questionnaires in Osogbo, Ife, Ede and Ilesha. Data collected were described and analysed using statistical tools of frequency, percentage and Inferential statistics of Optimal Scaling Regression analysis (ORS) for categorical data. The study discovered that media campaign and environmental education are among the steps that aid flood control and sustainable development in Osun State. It is recommended that policies should be made and implemented on teaching environmental studies in basic schools to start the sensitization process regarding flood management and prevention. Also, the media industry in Nigeria should step up their surveillance role.