Nigeria may lose $460bn to climate change — Report

Not less than $460 billion will be lost to climate change by 2050 if urgent actions are not taken by Nigeria to restrain its adverse effects, the new report by the Agora Policy has revealed.

The report, which indicated that Nigeria had already lost $100 billion to climate change by 2020 is titled, ‘Climate Change and Socio-Economic Development in Nigeria,’.

Produced with the support of the MacArthur Foundation, the report was presented at a one-day policy conversation tagged ‘Nigeria, Climate Change, and the Green Economy,’ as part of the preparation for COP28, in Abuja on Wednesday.

The report also highlights the different channels through which the adverse effects of climate change could worsen in Nigeria and further compound Nigeria’s developmental challenges.

It also points out the opportunities for Nigeria to foster rapid economic growth, diversify its energy sources, generate employment for its burgeoning youthful and urbanising populace, and address pervasive poverty and inequality through an equitable energy transition.

While presenting the highlights of the report, Prof. Chukwumerije Okereke, who is the Director of the Centre for Climate Change and Development, stated that 25 million Nigerians are at risk of flooding and 630 km2 of land is susceptible to flooding along the Niger-Benue basin in the Niger Delta area.

Prof. Okereke said about 357,000 people living in Lagos are exposed to flooding, and by 2050 3.2 million Lagosians will be exposed to flooding.

The don noted that the direct estimate of damage and loss fromom flooding in 2022 is N1.48 trillion, while the total damage and loss, including indirect ones, due to the flooding is about N2.6 trillion.

He, however, recommended strengthened national climate policy frameworks, strengthened institutional capacity, adequate climate funding, fair energy transition, public awareness, collaborative approach, and targeted sectoral interventions.

Waziri Adio, founder of Agora Policy, in his welcome address, stated that though some individuals, organisations, and government agencies are implementing significant climate interventions in the country, climate change is yet to get the prominence it deserves in the country.

“Both in official circles and among the populace, climate issues are not seen as really important and urgent. Our national attitude oscillates between denial and indifference.

“Most of our people, including highly-placed government officials, see climate change as other people’s problems or an issue that is only for tree-huggers and environmentalists, or something that should bother only those who have the luxury of not wrestling with hunger and other existential matters,” Adio said.

Waziri stated that the increasing threats of desertification, gully erosion and others already have deep, negative impacts on food production, food security, food inflation, water, health, productivity, energy, infrastructure, and the conflicts that continue to multiply partly on account of vanishing natural resources.

He counselled that there is a need to act urgently to prevent the effects of climate change before it deteriorates into a calamitous situation.

On his part, the Director of Programmes at the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), Akintunde Babatunde, said Nigeria’s climate change reality is multifaceted, and there is a need to act on implementing climate change policies.

“We do not lack policies on climate change in Nigeria; we have climate change laws, the National Council on Climate Change, and the Department of Climate Change at the Ministry of Environment, among others, but our problem is about proper action tailored to address the issues.

“How much can we use to build proper drainage so that it can prevent flooding? How much can we properly use for early warning systems to help with preparations? We need effective implementation of policies and judicious use of financial investment, both by the government and partners, and we need massive awareness by the media,” Babatunde said. The one-day policy conversation meeting was organised in partnership with the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Foundation, the Cable Newspapers, the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development, Clean Technology Hub, the CCCD, and the Nature News.