FG to issue $20 bn bond to address climate change

Climate change remains one of the greatest challenges of the present age even as its effects and threats continue to plague the nation’s ecosystem. However, plans are underway by the Federal Government to issue a $20 billion bond to raise funds to tackle these challenges in the country.

This was disclosed by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Dr Bukkar Hassan, during the ministry’s 2017 budget defense with the House of Representatives committee on climate change in Abuja.

Hassan said the ministry would execute 31 projects nationwide with each of the six geopolitical zones getting its own fair share of the projects.

Speaking on this budgetary allocation, the Chairman of the committee, Sam Onuigbo expressed that the N8.1 billion set aside to combat climate change in the budget was insufficient.

According to Onuigbo, “Nigeria’s investment pales rapidly into insignificance” when compared with the budgetary allocations of other countries for climate change.

“We have noted with profound concern that modest amount deliberately set aside by the budget office for agencies to tackling climate change and also lay the foundation for the nation to benefit from investment opportunities that abound in this exercise”, he added.

He however informed that the National Assembly was working on a bill to make the Executive arm create an enabling regulatory framework to facilitate investment in climate change.

Meanwhile the World Bank has said that Nigeria needs about $140 billion by 2030 to effectively take action on climate change.

The Practical Manager, Africa Environment and Natural Resource at the World Bank, Benoit Bosquet, who disclosed this during a Climate Change Knowledge Immersion workshop organised by the World Bank in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Environment informed that measures should be taken urgently to address this challenge as agricultural production in many regions will decrease in many regions due to temperature, desert warming and rising of the sea level.

Speaking further on the impacts of climate change, Bosquet noted that the underprivileged in the society were likely to suffer the aftermaths more, particularly women, children and elderly citizens.