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Tag: Climate Change Impact

  • ”How Nigeria Could Turn Climate Change into Economic Opportunity”-Prof Okereke

    ”How Nigeria Could Turn Climate Change into Economic Opportunity”-Prof Okereke

    The ongoing effort to stem the negative impact of climate change presents Nigeria with unique opportunities to boost its economy and improve electricity supply through renewable sources, expert on climate change issues, Professor Chukwumerije Okereke has said.

    Okereke who is the Director, Centre for Climate Change and Development, CCCD, Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike, stated this in Abuja at the award ceremony for the winners of the second National Essay Competition titled ‘Climate Change and Nigeria’s Economic Development: A letter to Mr. Incoming President’.

    Prof. Okereke said the essays written by the three finalists would be sent to whoever emerges Nigeria’s President in the general elections.

    He noted that climate change was not just an environmental issue but a national emergency that should be paid serious attention to by all Nigerians.

    According to him, “Many people misunderstand climate change as a small environmental problem somewhere. We are saying that climate change is a national economic development issue. It has to do with agriculture. It has to do with migration. It has to do with security. It has to do with water resources. It has to do with energy. It has to do with urban planning. It has to do with transportation.

    “Nigeria is losing according to the statistics and research done by the UK Government up to $100 billion a year to climate change as at 2020. And that number may go up to $250 billion per year by 2050 if Nigeria fails to take drastic action to tackle the problem. And the youth is the future.

    “They’re our leaders. You can see how massive their engagement in the current election campaign is. So we thought that it’s important to bring the youth together, to animate them, to equip them to empower them, to sensitise them so that they can champion the cause of climate change and the action to solve the problem in Nigeria.

    “As to whether the right is going to get to the President, absolutely. We will make sure that we email these three winning essays to whoever becomes the next president”.

    Prof. Okereke explained that the government needs to create more awareness among Nigerians on the impact of climate change and also set out a national plan to tackle the issues.

    He said that the national plan has to be implemented to the letter and also ensure that institutions charged with implementing the policies are staffed with competent people to drive the process.

    “The good news is that if we can act on climate change in a sensible and wise and intelligent manner, we can actually turn it from being a threat to being an opportunity. For example, in the area of renewable energy, we have just about 4,000 megawatts of energy that we are generating for a country of about 200 million people. South Africa generates about 40 gigawatts. And yet, Nigeria is a land of sun, we can harvest all the energy we need to meet our power and electricity from the sun.

    “Second, we can begin to utilise what we call green agriculture to be able to deal with the issue of desertification, desert encroachment, the degradation of the Lake Chad lecture and begin to create opportunity for women and men to go into green agriculture, which will build resilience to climate change and also lead to a lot of job opportunities.

    “We should stop the flaring of our gas in the Niger Delta, because its contribution is about 55 million metric tonnes of CO2 per annum to Nigeria. And yet if we harness those gases we can use it to power modular cooking and energy in the rural areas of the country”, he added.

    Source:(CCCD Post)

  • African Economic Conference 2022 urges development community to “walk the talk” on innovative solutions to fight climate change

    African Economic Conference 2022 urges development community to “walk the talk” on innovative solutions to fight climate change

    Participants asserted that achieving net zero emissions—the crux of the three-day conference—can be accomplished if all stakeholders are robustly engaged
    BALACLAVA, Mauritius, December 12, 2022/ — The 17th African Economic Conference ended on Sunday with a charge to the development community and governments to take decisive actions to address climate change.

    The African Development Bank, United Nations Economic Community for Africa, and United Nations Development Programme, the conference hosts, called on participants to walk the talk by producing concrete solutions for climate-smart development on the continent.

    Participants asserted that achieving net zero emissions—the crux of the three-day conference—can be accomplished if all stakeholders are robustly engaged, including providing the right environment for public-private partnerships.

    “Africa is the region that is most vulnerable in the face of climate change,” said Mauritius’ Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development, Renganaden Padayachy. The scourge of climate change poses a threat to lives, he cautioned.

    “And if we limit climate change, we will change lives,” he said at the closing of the three-day conference, which had an in-person attendance of over 350 delegates, with thousands more participating online. AEC 2022 provided a timely forum to discuss innovative solutions to support climate-smart development in Africa.

    African Development Bank Acting Chief Economist and Vice President for Economic Governance and Knowledge Management, Prof. Kevin Urama, stressed that Africa’s future will come from the innovation of young Africans.

    Speaking directly to Africa’s youth, Urama said: “Your innovation, your knowledge, your power, use that so that we can do climate-smart development on the continent.” He noted that the conference produced rich lessons, including challenges, solutions, and what the private sector and government can do to leverage available skills and technology.

    In a speech on her behalf, UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Africa, Ahunna Eziakonwa, called for accelerated action.

    “We must be particularly mindful of the economic, societal, environmental, political, and security costs of green transitions. We must fully understand the trade-offs and opportunity costs on communities and families and avoid pathways that undermine development prospects and deepen inequalities,” Eziakonwa said.

    She observed that climate finance is urgent and urged African governments to resolve the uncertainty around it. “Reaching net zero emissions must also mean reaching zero poverty,” Eziakonwa reiterated.

    Deputy Executive Secretary and Chief Economist of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), Dr. Hanan Morsy, observed that addressing climate change should not be a choice but an imperative for Africa to achieve climate-smart development.

    “As such, what we have developed and discussed here regarding climate-smart development is not just an event. This is a process,” she said and urged African countries to heed the analyses and recommendations presented at the conference.

    The conference, held in Balaclava, Mauritius, brought together policymakers, climate experts, representatives of the private sector, academics and youth to develop an action plan to guide Africa as it navigates the threat of climate change.

    AEC2022 was jointly organized by the African Development Bank, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, and the United Nations Development Programme, in collaboration with the government of Mauritius. This year’s conference had the theme Supporting Climate-smart Development in Africa.

    Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB)
  • Climate shocks to drive millions of Ghanaians into poverty – IFC calls for more action.

    Climate shocks to drive millions of Ghanaians into poverty – IFC calls for more action.

    A report from the World Bank paper estimates that, globally, up to 132 million people will be pushed into extreme poverty by climate change by 2030.

    In Ghana, the just released Ghana Country Climate and Development Report estimates that at least one million more Ghanaians could fall into poverty due to climate shocks, if urgent climate actions were not taken.

    The report highlighted that incomes could reduce by up to 40 per cent for poor households by 2050 due to climate shocks.

    Speaking at the launch of Rules for Green Bonds Rules by the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE), the Regional Industry Director for Financial Institutions Group, Africa of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Aliou Maiga, said while these numbers were concerning, it could be halved, if the whole world acted collectively.

    He said this would require collective action and financing that prioritises greener and more sustainable development.

    He noted that climate financing not only had an important development imperative, but also a significant market opportunity.

    He said an IFC study showed that sub-saharan Africa needed US783 billion investment in climate finance by 2030.

    Opportunity for growth

    He said green finance presented the single largest growth opportunity for investors in emerging markets, noting that financial institutions could grow the share of their green lending portfolio from seven per cent to 30 per cent by 2030, increasing profitability and gaining market share.

    “Green banking could enable outperformance by successful banks – not just by better managing environmental risks, but by being at the forefront of new business related to climate lending,” he stated.

    He, therefore, commended the GSE for showing leadership in green and sustainability finance through the launch of the green bonds rules.“IFC is committed to working with Ghana’s stakeholders to facilitate investments that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support climate change adaptation,” he stated.

    Well timed

    Also at the launch, the Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Rev. Daniel Ogbarmey Tetteh, said investing in green and sustainable future was both well timed and opportune.

    He said sustainability was a broader topic that hinged on social, human, economic and environmental pillars, none of which could be ignored.

    Credit(Agric Today)