Victor EzejaThe Nigerian government has revealed that it only sponsored 422 persons out of 1,411 delegates currently attending COP28 in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.
This was contained in a statement released on Monday, signed by Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris.
The issue of the Nigerian delegation to the conference had raised dust over the weekend after a report emerged that 1,411 Nigerians were found in a list of registered delegates attending the conference. Many Nigerians who reacted to the report, questioned the rationality of having such a large number of delegations for the conference considering the financial implication at a time when the government is preaching austerity measures given the harsh economic realities in the country.
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The minister said it had become imperative that the Federal Government should make the clarification on the number of government-sponsored delegates in line with its avowed commitment to transparency and accessibility regarding public information.
The 2023 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) or Conference of Parties commonly referred to as COP28, is the 28th UN Climate Change Conference, holding from November 30 to December 12, 2023 at Expo City, Dubai.
The minister said the COP28 is being attended by more than 70,000 participants and delegates from over 100 countries and “Nigeria’s representation is very much in line with our status as Africa’s leading Sovereign voice and player in climate action.”
He explained that parties to the Convention from Nigeria include government officials, representatives from the private sector, civil society, the voluntary sector, state governments, media, multilateral institutions, representatives of marginalised communities, and many others.
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“It is imperative to point out that the overall Nigerian delegation to COP-28 comprises Government-sponsored (Federal and State Governments) and non-government-sponsored participants (from Private Companies, NGOs, CSOs, Media, academia, etc),” the minister stated.
He gave a breakdown of the of the 422 government-sponsored delegates as follows: National Council on Climate Change – 32; Federal Ministry of Environment – 34; all ministries – 167; Presidency – 67; Office of the Vice President – 9; National Assembly – 40; and Federal Parastatals/Agencies – 73.
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Why Govt Sponsored delegation to COP28
The minister further stated that Nigeria couldn’t afford to be absent from the conference given its status as the biggest economy and most populous country in Africa, with a substantial extractive economy that makes it extensively vulnerable to climate change and therefore has a significant stake in climate action.
He added that “COP-28 presents an array of investment and partnership opportunities for the various sectors affected by climate change, and Nigeria is already benefiting from its ongoing participation.”
He listed some progress made so far with Nigeria’s participation in the conference.
He said: “Nigeria and Germany signed an accelerated performance agreement to expedite the implementation of the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI) to improve Nigeria’s electricity supply. The agreement was signed by Mr. Kenny Anuwe, the Managing Director and CEO of FGN Power Company, and Ms. Nadja Haakansson, Siemens Energy’s Senior Vice President and Managing Director for Africa, at a ceremony witnessed by President Tinubu and Chancellor Scholz.”
He also stated that President Tinubu hosted a high-level meeting with stakeholders and investors on the Nigeria Carbon Market and the Electric Buses Rollout Programme on the margins of the COP28 climate summit.
“The Electric Buses program is only the first step in a series of innovative, clean, modern, and sustainable initiatives across diverse sectors, all aimed at simultaneously addressing climate change-related challenges, reducing carbon footprint, modernizing infrastructure systems, and positioning Nigeria as an attractive destination for global investments.”
The Idris also revealed that Nigeria stands to benefit from the Loss and Damage Fund established during COP-27 in Egypt and formally operationalized at the opening plenary of COP-28 in Dubai.
“The Fund will provide substantial non-debt financing to support countries most affected by the impact of climate change. Hundreds of millions of dollars have already been pledged as contributions to the Fund,” the minister added.
He added that aside from bilateral talks held with several countries and multilateral partners, Tinubu also met the President of UAE to concretize engagements between the two countries.
The minister maintained that “President Tinubu and other officials on the Federal government delegation are in Dubai for serious business, not a jamboree.”
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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