Developing AI-Driven Solutions for Disaster Response and Recovery in Nigeria – with DataCamp

When floods swallow entire neighborhoods and communication lines go silent, information becomes the most powerful form of aid.
In Nigeria, natural disasters from floods and droughts to building collapses are recurring tragedies that continue to test the limits of emergency response.

In 2023, the Omdena Nigeria Local Chapter, in collaboration with DataCamp, launched a six week challenge to design an intelligent, data driven way to prevent, respond to, and recover from these crises. The goal was to build a scalable AI powered disaster response system capable of delivering life saving information when it matters most.

A Country in Crisis: Why Disaster Response Needed Reinvention

Every year, floods displace hundreds of thousands of Nigerians, submerging homes and destroying livelihoods. Building collapses in major cities like Lagos and Abuja claim lives with alarming regularity, while droughts threaten food security in the north.

Despite tireless efforts by agencies like NEMA (National Emergency Management Agency), most disaster responses remain reactive rather than preventive.
Warning systems are fragmented, relief operations often lack coordination, and misinformation spreads rapidly through social media, worsening panic instead of guiding action.

Rural communities are frequently left behind, with little or no access to verified alerts. And when disasters strike, emergency responders face another challenge: incomplete data about affected zones and populations.

As climate change amplifies the frequency and intensity of natural disasters, Nigeria urgently needs modern tools that unite data, communication, and empathy, a system capable of anticipating crises, informing citizens, and coordinating responders in real time.

That vision became the heartbeat of the Omdena DataCamp partnership.

The Challenge: Turning Data and AI into a Lifeline

When Omdena’s Lagos (UNILAG) Chapter took on the challenge, the team’s mission was clear yet bold: to develop a working prototype of an AI driven disaster response system that could combine machine intelligence with human compassion.

The idea was to create a digital assistant, capable of gathering live disaster data, issuing early warnings, guiding people to safety, and helping responders make informed decisions.
At its core was a belief that technology can and should protect human life.

The project, titled Developing AI Driven Solutions for Disaster Response and Recovery in Nigeria with DataCamp, drew participants from across Nigeria and the world. Guided by Omdena’s collaborative, non competitive approach, engineers, analysts, and domain experts came together to build, test, and refine the prototype over six weeks.

The Approach: Designing DIMA the Disaster Information Management Assistant

The team’s solution took shape as an intelligent chatbot called DIMA (Disaster Information Management Assistant), a proof of concept for a full scale AI powered disaster response system.

DIMA was designed to do more than deliver alerts. It could answer safety questions, locate nearby relief centers, and guide individuals through critical moments, all in a tone that remained calm, empathetic, and culturally sensitive.

A Collaborative Build

Data was sourced from Nigerian agencies, international earthquake and weather APIs, and open source datasets.
Using Supabase for structured storage (relief centers, contacts, logistics) and Pinecone for text embeddings (FAQs, safety guides), the team built a retrieval augmented generation (RAG) system powered by GPT based models.

This allowed DIMA to retrieve accurate, verified information in real time instead of relying solely on generative text. The user interface, built on Streamlit, provided an accessible web platform, while Twilio integration enabled SMS and email alerts for users in low connectivity regions.

Empathy Built into AI

Recognizing that disasters are emotional as well as logistical, the team incorporated disaster dialogue psychology into DIMA’s responses.
Rather than cold, robotic text, the assistant was trained to communicate with clarity and compassion, providing reassurance alongside instructions. This subtle yet crucial layer transformed DIMA from a tech tool into a trusted voice during uncertainty.

A Truly Collaborative Effort

The initiative was co led by Anna Koroleva and Rasha Salim, supported by domain expert Sabina Sujecka, lead ML engineer William Green, and a team of Nigerian contributors including Ayoola Fakoya and Ebuka Nwafornso. Backed by DataCamp’s learning resources, the team blended education, innovation, and social purpose, exactly what Omdena’s global community stands for.

By the end of six weeks, DIMA was operational, a functioning prototype that could serve as a model for future national scale AI disaster systems.

The Impact: From Concept to Change

The DIMA chatbot demonstrated how artificial intelligence could revolutionize Nigeria’s disaster management ecosystem.

By integrating verified data sources, it drastically reduced the time between a disaster’s occurrence and citizens’ awareness of it.
Users could access accurate, real time guidance, whether they needed to know if their area was affected, where to find shelter, or how to stay safe until help arrived.

The impact extended beyond the product.
The project gave young Nigerian engineers hands on experience in data infrastructure, AI model design, and real world deployment, empowering a new generation of local technologists to build humanitarian tools tailored to their communities.

It also strengthened Nigeria’s capacity for data collaboration, showing that NGOs, technologists, and agencies can co create solutions that are both technically sound and socially relevant.

For communities, DIMA represented more than software. It was a symbol of preparedness, a step toward ensuring that no one is left uninformed in times of crisis.

Looking Ahead: Building a Smarter, More Compassionate Future

The success of this pilot project laid the foundation for scaling AI driven disaster tools across Nigeria and potentially across Africa.

Future versions of DIMA aim to include multilingual capabilities, integration with WhatsApp and Telegram, and offline functionality for remote areas. There are also plans to embed geospatial mapping to visualize impact zones and connect the chatbot directly to local authorities for coordinated relief.

On a broader level, this initiative reaffirmed a vital truth: AI for social good is not about algorithms alone, it is about people. It is about designing systems that respect human emotion while delivering precision and speed.

Omdena’s partnership with DataCamp proved that when global expertise meets local insight, technology becomes a bridge between knowledge and action, between data and dignity.

In the years ahead, projects like DIMA will help transform how the world responds to disaster: from reacting after tragedy to preventing loss, empowering resilience, and designing hope