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Civil Society Organizations in the country have condemned the non-implementation of provisions of the Climate Change Act 2021 by Nigeria’s Federal Government.

They expressed dismay at the lack of actions in activating the core provisions of the act, eight months after it was signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The leaders of Civil Society Organisations and other experts in climate change sector therefore demanded for immediate implementation of the act by the Federal Government of Nigeria.

According to them, this is to ensure that the country achieve its 2060 net zero ambition and reduce the devastating effects of climate change across  the country.

The Civil Society Organisation leaders made the call on at the weekend during a workshop with the theme “Understanding and Implementation of Nigeria’s Climate Change Act: Implications for Nigeria’s Net Zero Target”.

The virtual workshop was organized by the Society for Planet Prosperity in collaboration with the Centre for Climate Change and Development Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu Alike (CCCD AEFUNAI) and Global Environmental and Climate Conservation Initiative (GECCI).

The CSOs leaders expressed dissatisfaction with the government’s inability to implement the content of the climate change act which had been signed into law since November, 2021.

They wondered what could be the cause for the delay in constituting and setting up the National Council on Climate Change to champion climate action as captured in the Act.

They noted that the continued delay in the implementation of climate change would portray the image of the country bad in the international arena and also give the impression of unseriousness to the issue of climate change mitigation.

Speaking during the virtual event, a member representing Ikwuano/Umuahia North and South Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives and the sponsor of the Climate Change bill before it was passed into law in 2021, Hon. Sam Onuigbo narrated how the devastating effect of climate change in his community spurred him into initiating and sponsoring the climate change bill.

He stressed that if government further delays in implementing the climate change act, it would be setting the country up for more devastating effects of climate change such as flooding and desertification

He argued that the majority of the communal and land clashes in the country were orchestrated by the effect of climate change.

“Lack of implementation of the Climate Change Act is exacerbating the insecurity challenges in the country. The Federal Government ought to have inaugurated the council before now, so as to demand a report from the Director General of the Council”, he said

Hon. Onuigbo therefore called on the federal government to immediately set the ball rolling by constituting the National Council on Climate Change which would pilot the implementation of the act, if the country can achieve the 2060 net zero projections.

In his presentation, titled “Nigeria’s Climate Change Act (CCA), 2021”, the Director of Global Legislators Organisation for a Balanced Environment (GLOBE), Mr. Nnaemeka Oruh, stressed that the Act was made to address climate issues in the country and called for all hands to be on deck to ensure full implementation of the Act.

He called on the relevant government agencies to work fast and ensure the proper implementation of the Act.

In another presentation on the “role of CSOs in implementing and monitoring Nigeria’s CCA”, Barr. Nkiruka Stella Okonkwo – CEO/Founder, Fresh & Young Brains Development Initiative (FBIN)/Alexijan Consults, explored the role of civil society organisations in implementing and monitoring Nigeria’s CCA.

She advocated for CSOs desks in all relevant MDAs and the Council Secretariat as it would assist in ensuring that the CCA is fully implemented.

Barr. Nkiruka also called for a National CSOs conference on Nigeria’s CCA to provide a platform for all CSOs to collaborate and engage in the implementation and monitoring of the CCA.

The virtual workshop, which was attended by about 60 CSOs, was moderated by Prof. Chukwumerije Okereke, the Executive Director, Society of Planet Prosperity and Director, Centre for Climate Change and Development Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu Alike.

Climate change is one of the defining issues of our age. Nigeria is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change and this situation calls for an urgent action to reduce the impact of climate change and ensure that the environment continues to benefit present and future generations.

President Buhari did a good thing at COP26 when he announced that Nigeria will seek to achieve net zero emission by 2060. He also did well when he signed the Climate Change Bill into law after the COP26. However, since then, nothing has been done to implement the Climate Change Act even though the government goes about receiving praises from all over the world for doing a great job in establishing a climate change law.

Therefore, the Global Environmental and Climate Conservation Initiative (GECCI) is joining forces with the Society for Planet and Prosperity (SPP) to educate the Nigerian CSOs on the importance of the Nigerian Climate Act and to moblise CSO leaders to call for the immediate implementation of the Act.

For the past 10 years, GECCI has been actively involved in creating awareness, engaging the Nigerian youths in the sensitisation and mobilisation of the public on the imperatives of positive actions to reverse environmental pollution and global climate change towards achieving a net zero.

Through our community initiative project (which has spread throughout the country in the 36 states of the Federation), we have made significant contributions to creating awareness of climate and environmental change in Nigeria mostly among the Nigerian youths.

We were hoping that the implementation of the net zero target announced by the President during COP26 in Glasgow and the signing of the Climate Chance Act which followed, will help to inspire Nigerian youths, and demonstrate that the government is serious in tackling climate change to protect the earth for future generations.

The Climate Act provides for the establishment of climate coordinators in six regions and 36 states of the country. GECCI believes that this is a good development which will help to ensure the effective mobilisation of CSOs, NGOs, and youths across Nigeria’s six regions to achieve the noble goals of the Nigeria Climate Change Act.

We believe that this will also help to raise public awareness of the Climate Change Act throughout Nigeria to inspire a global popular movement to bring about this urgent implementation. The next phase we saw was grassroots advocacy, sensitisation, and mobilisation of people in the rural communities through town hall meetings, dialogues, core theatre presentations, and focus group discussions.

At the same time, we were excited that the Climate Change Act wanted to facilitate the involvement of the youth and Nigeria’s civil society organisations in the governance of climate change. The Act says that the President will appoint a representative of environment-related civil society organizsations (CSOs) on the recommendation of the Minister responsible for Environment, and the Director-General of the National Council on Climate Change will serve as Secretary. It also expected that the Act will help the education and training of CBOs, FBOs, NGOs, networks, and groups across the six geopolitical zones on the importance of implementing the Climate Change Act.

Finally, we believe that, working under the Secretariat to the National Council on Climate Change, the government will be able to improve the much-desired synergies in implementation of climate change in the country through the promotion of common understanding of the issues, coordination, and sharing of ideas among the various ministries and agencies.

The youth is not happy that several months since the net zero target was announced and climate bill was signed into law, the government has been muted about implementing the law. We are asking, is this another the more you look, the less you see? What is going on? Why should a government sign a bill into law and not put in place urgently measures to implement the law? If the law was not considered important, why was it signed into law in the first place. We are wondering, who are the ones in government that do not want the law to be implemented? What are their reasons?

It is said that it is better to be late than never. Although the government has lots a lot of time, we are calling on the government to implement the climate act without any further delay. Doing so will be good for the country and help to protect our environment and economy from the negative impacts of climate change.

By Abdulhamid Tahir Hamid, Chief Executive Officer, Global Environmental and Climate Conservation Initiative (GECCI)

The Society for Planet Prosperity (SPP), in collaboration with the Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu Alike (AE-FUNAI) Centre for Climate Change and Development (CCCD) and Global Environmental and Climate Conservation Initiative (GECCI), is hosting a virtual workshop for stakeholders in the environment and climate change sector.

The virtual workshop, entitled “Understanding and Implementation of Nigeria’s Climate Change Act: Implications for Nigeria’s Net Zero Target”, is aimed at engaging the leaders of civil society and non-governmental organisations in the country.

The aim of the workshop is to gain knowledge, share ideas and provide insights on the role and involvement of CSOs in implementing the core provisions of the Nigeria Climate Change Act and open conversations on how to ensure public understanding of the climate change law.

Speaking on the upcoming workshop, the Chair of Society for Planet Prosperity and Director, CCCD AEFUNAI, Professor Chukwumerije Okereke, said that the forthcoming virtual workshop would bring together leaders of about 50 CSOs and NGOs to discuss on how to assist the government in implementing the core provisions of the Climate Change Act and increase public awareness of the climate change law.

He stated that the workshop would bring together the leaders to inform and analyse the Act, to aid better understanding, as well as to examine the state of affairs since the passing of the Climate Change Act. According to Professor Okereke, the event would generate ideas that the CSOs and the Nigerian Government could use to increase public awareness and implementation of the Climate Change Act, as well as generating ideas that would be documented and submitted to appropriate and relevant government agencies for actions and implementations.

The workshop, which is scheduled hold on Thursday, July 14, 2022, will feature Barr. Nkiruka Stella Okonkwo, the CEO and founder, Fresh and Young Brains Development Initiative; Nnaemeka Oruh, Ag. National Coordinator, GLOBE as speakers, while Professor Okereke is the host and will moderate the session. The Director, Department of Climate Change in the Federal Ministry of Environment, Mrs Iniobong Abiola-Awe, will deliver the opening remarks.

It will be recalled that, in November 2021, President Muhammadu Buhari signed into law the Nigeria Climate Change Act, which provides a solid framework for climate actions at the national level.

Nigeria’s 2021 Climate Change Act provides for an ambitious framework for mainstreaming climate actions in line with national development priorities and sets a net-zero target for 2050-2070.

However, despite the signing of the bill into law and the promises the provisions of the law have to coordinate and ensure climate action in Nigeria, the government and relevant stakeholders have not taken any known steps to implement the basic provisions of the Act, such as setting up the National Council on Climate Change several months after the signing of the act into law.

By Chinedu Nwasum

The Society for Planet and Prosperity (SPP) is supporting the Global Environmental and Climate Conservation Initiative (GECCI) in the organization of Nigeria youths post COP26 conference across the Six geo-political zones of Nigeria with the theme “Outcome of COP26 and where do we go from here”. GECCI is organizing the event in collaboration with the United Nations Information Center (UNIC) Nigeria (Host). The first of the series was held in Port Harcourt (South South) while the second series will be holding at the Federal University of Technology (FUTA), Akure (South West) January 22, 2022 in collaboration with Elomgreenie and Environmental Conservation Club, FUTA with other series already planned for the remaining geo-political regions of Nigeria.

 The conference is expected to bring together participants from government and non-profit organizations, the private sector, members of academia, and civil society organizations, it will provide better understanding of the different environmental issues affecting the different regions of Nigeria and encourage inclusiveness, It will also create a unique opportunity to hear leading experts, including those who attended COP26 in person share experience and respond to questions and a platform to give special recognition to Green Actors with awards of excellence.

According to the CEO, GECCI, Dr. Abdulhamid Tahir Hamid, the conference is expected to achieve the following key objectives: To gain a better understanding of the COP26 outcome and what it means for Nigeria’s climate policy and economic development; develop a roadmap for the domestication of the outcome of COP26; Empowering youth to explore innovative ideas to tackle development challenges; creating an Opportunity for Joint Reflection of Key Stakeholders and Experts on the Outcome of COP26 and the Implications for Nigeria; Develop an Implementation Roadmap for National Climate Actions that will Leverage the Opportunities for Just Green Transition that were Created at COP 26 while Strengthening Nigeria’s Resilience Against Climate Change; Providing youth with the tools to build and engage in impactful projects while Identifying interest in opportunities for capacity development, partnerships, and further action.

Society for Planet and Prosperity is committed to promoting climate action and climate advocacy. SPP is also committed to advancing the course for effective implementation of the Nigeria’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and facilitating resilient and green recovery approach for a just transition to net zero. SPP is being represented at the South West conference by Gboyega Olorunfemi on the panel alongside eminently qualified panelists. The keynote speech for the South West conference will be delivered by Professor Ahmed Balogun of the Department of Meteorology and Climate Science, FUTA while the event will be moderated by Kayode Ojeola of Elomgreenie club, FUTA.