Abstract: Floods are devastating natural hazards that cause loss of lives, displace communities, and disrupt economic growth. Geospatial analysis can identify flood-prone areas and inform policy decisions. The study presents a geospatial analysis of flood risk areas in Maiduguri Metropolis, Borno State, Nigeria, using a quantitative research approach based solely on secondary data. Data sources included SRTM 30M Digital Elevation Model (DEM), Landsat 30m imagery, rainfall records, and Nigeria shapefiles. These datasets were analyzed using ENVI 5.3 and ArcMap 10.8, to identify key flood-inducing factors such as elevation, slope, drainage density, distance from rivers, Topographic Wetness Index (TWI), land use/land cover (LULC), and rainfall distribution. The Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) was used to rank these factors, followed by Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA) to generate a flood risk map. The findings revealed that more than 70% of the metropolis is located in high to very high flood risk zones, mainly due to low elevation, gentle slopes, and close proximity to rivers. Rainfall emerged as the most prominent flood causative factor, followed by TWI and elevation. The study also observed significant urban expansion, with built-up areas increasing from 21.7% in 2004 to 61.3% in 2024, accompanied by a sharp decline in agriculture and vegetative land. This rapid urbanization strongly correlates with increased flood vulnerability, as evidenced by a high R² value (0.997) linking urban land use change to flood events, flood risk analysis showed that 41.9% of the area falls within moderate flood-prone zones, 28.9% within high-risk zones and only 29.2% in low-risk zones. These findings underscore the urgent need for flood mitigation strategies, including extended drainage system, early warning mechanisms and strategic urban planning.
Key words: Flood Risk, Geospatial Analysis, Maiduguri Metropolis