Climate Change Obstructing Tinubu’s Efforts To Lift Many Out Of Extreme Poverty – SGF

Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Sen. George Akume, yesterday said President Bola Tinubu has admitted that climate change is obstructing his efforts to lift many Nigerians out of extreme poverty. He demonstrated this by participating in COP 28 in Dubai soon after he assumed office.

According to him, President Tinubu is one of such world leaders who has expressed a strong desire to reduce extreme poverty among Nigerians. He has promised a ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’ aimed at pulling millions of Nigerians out of extreme poverty in the years ahead.

Akume stated these at a forum on addressing the impact of climate change on farmer-herder clashes in Nigeria, organised by the office of the deputy chairman, House Committee on Environment, Hon. Terseer Ugbor, at the National Assembly complex in Abuja.

Represented by his Senior Special Assistant, Technical, Professor Bolaji Babatunde, the SGF said the president has recently established a 25-person Committee on Climate Action and Green Economic Solutions to coordinate and oversee all policies and programmes on climate action and green economic development while he appointed a special envoy on Climate Change Action.

“The president’s actions are a pointer to the fact that Nigeria is willing to take drastic measures to achieve the promise made under the Paris Agreement, which was to cut down emissions by 20% and by 45% by the year 2030. Earlier this year, Nigeria launched the Nationally Determined Contributions Implementation Framework (NDC-IF).

“The NDC implementation framework is not merely a collection of words and ambitious assumptions; it is a testament to our collective vision, shared values, and unwavering commitment to the Paris Agreement. It also reflects our efforts towards fostering a sustainable future for future generations.

“The framework, which is a national tool designed to ensure coordination, transparency, and resource mobilisation, raises awareness through 19 outcomes, 146 outputs, and 293 key performance indicators. It also presents a central platform for stakeholders to find Nigeria’s climate action priorities, support needs, and ongoing progress to catalyze and align for support,” Akume added.

While declaring the forum open, the House of Representatives speaker, Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, said climate change has contributed to worsening the farmer-herder clashes in the country.

Represented by Hon. Dickson Takighir (APC, Benue), Abbas said that as part of efforts to address the challenge, outdated herding and farming methods needed to be eliminated and global trends in farming adopted amidst climate change.

“As someone from one of the hotspots (Kaduna) of the Farmer-Herder clashes, I am not new to the subject. Indeed, it is true that, in many parts of the country, farming communities have been deserted, with terrible repercussions on food security.

“Climate change has worsened the farmer-herder challenges. Farmers and herders compete for less resources to draw crops and fodder. Distortions in rainfall patterns resulting from climate change have led to desertification. In search of greener pastures, herders have continued to migrate into farming communities.”

Earlier, the deputy chairman of the House Committee on Environment, Ugbor, lamented the statistics by the International Crisis Group, which showed that between 2013 and 2022, there were over 1,800 deaths and 2.5 million people displaced from their homes due to clashes between herders and farmers in Nigeria.

“In proffering solutions to this humanitarian crisis, we have designed this initiative to address the problem of affordable green housing for displaced persons, restoration of degraded farming and grazing lands, training and capacity building, resource and water management, renewable energy integration, and peace building through dialogue and mediation,” he noted.