Victor Ezeja
As a mark of its commitment to tackling climate change challenges which is currently a global concern, Nigeria was the first African country to launch Energy Transition Plan and also issue a Sovereign Green Bond, says Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris.
Idris also affirmed that the country was also one of the first to pass national climate change legislation. The Climate Change bill signed into law by former President Muhammadu Buhari in November 2021 was to provide Nigeria with a legal framework for the country to achieve its climate goals, achieve long-term social and economic sustainability, and resilience. The signing of the bill into law followed the Buhari’s commitment made at the COP 26 in Glasgow, Scotland, about achieving net zero by 2060. The Act contains core objectives of achieving net zero emissions between 2050 and 2070.
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The information minister who was reacting to outrage by Nigerians questioning 1,411 persons on Nigerian delegation attending the ongoing COP 28 in Expo City, Dubai, said the country with its climate action credentials demonstrated so far, has every justification to actively participate.
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“It should be highlighted that, over the years, Nigeria has firmly demonstrated its climate action credentials by being the first African country to launch its Energy Transition Plan, the first African country to issue a Sovereign Green Bond, and one of the first to pass national climate change legislation,” Idris stated.
The summit which is the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as Conference of the Parties (COP28) with the theme “Unite, Act, and Deliver,” started on November 30 and will end on December 12.
With the world being faced with threat of climate change, the conference will according to analysts, expected to feature discussions on contentious issues like whether to phase out fossil fuels and how to finance the energy transition agenda in developing countries.
The Nigeria’s information ministers stated that President Tinubu had been “unequivocal in his position that Africa, which is battling problems of poverty and security and struggling to provide education and healthcare to her people, cannot be told to abandon its primary source of income, which is mostly from extractive industries, without the West providing the funding and investment in alternative and clean energy sources.”
Tinubu had during his speech at the conference on Saturday, disclosed that the country is set to deploy a fleet of 100 electric buses as part of its commitment towards a sustainable and eco-friendly future.
The president asserted that the “pioneering initiative is to significantly reduce Nigeria’s carbon footprint and modernise the country’s transportation systems.”
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
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