Federal Govt Seeks New Financing To Close Nigeria’s Climate Adaptation Gap

The federal government has called for increased private-sector investment, innovative financing and stronger partnerships to close Nigeria’s widening climate adaptation gap.

It warned that government resources alone cannot deliver the resilient infrastructure, technologies and systems required to protect the economy and vulnerable communities from climate change.

The government also said the successful implementation of Nigeria’s National Adaptation Plan (NAP) would require broad-based partnerships involving the private sector, financial institutions, development partners, research organisations, civil society and local communities, as adaptation increasingly becomes both a national development priority and a major investment opportunity.

The minister of Environment, Balarabe Abbas Lawal, stated this in Abuja at a stakeholders’ engagement on the socialisation of the National Adaptation Plan for development partners and the private sector.

Lawal, who was represented by the minstry’s permanent secretary, Dr Salihu Aminu Usman, said Nigeria remained committed to global climate action while pursuing its national development priorities through a range of policy and institutional frameworks.

These, he said, include the Climate Change Act, Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0), National Adaptation Plan, Energy Transition Plan, National Clean Cooking Policy and National Carbon Market Activation Framework, all designed to support the transition towards a climate-resilient and low-carbon economy.

The minister described the National Adaptation Plan as one of Nigeria’s most significant milestones in responding to the growing threat of climate change, saying the plan provides a comprehensive framework for identifying climate risks, reducing vulnerabilities and mainstreaming adaptation into national, sectoral and sub-national development planning.

According to him, the NAP establishes priorities across critical sectors, including agriculture, water resources, health, infrastructure, energy, biodiversity, forestry, disaster risk management and human settlements.

He, however, stressed that translating the plan from policy into concrete action would require substantially greater investment, technology transfer, institutional strengthening and innovative financing mechanisms.

“The adaptation gap requires new partnerships, innovative financing mechanisms, technology transfer, strengthened institutions and sustained investments,” Lawal said.

He also called for climate risks to be mainstreamed into every aspect of development planning and decision-making, stressing that climate adaptation must no longer be treated as an isolated environmental issue.

The minister said development partners had remained indispensable to Nigeria’s climate action efforts, noting that their interventions had helped strengthen institutions, build technical capacity, improve climate data and information systems, facilitate access to international climate finance and support adaptation initiatives across the country.

He assured potential investors that the Federal Government was committed to creating an enabling environment for private-sector participation through policy reforms, institutional coordination and partnerships aimed at reducing investment risks and encouraging innovation.

Lawal urged stakeholders to identify practical solutions, develop bankable adaptation programmes and strengthen collaboration to mobilise the investments required to move Nigeria from climate adaptation planning to implementation.

“Together, let us build a future where every investment strengthens resilience, every partnership accelerates progress, and every Nigerian has the opportunity to thrive despite the challenges of a changing climate,” he said.

The Permanent Secretary, Dr Salihu Aminu Usman, represented at the event by the Director of Climate Change in the ministry, Dr Iniagbon Abiola-Awe, said successful implementation of the NAP could not be achieved through government efforts alone.

Usman said the private sector had a critical role to play in driving innovation, mobilising investment, developing climate-resilient technologies, strengthening resilient value chains, expanding climate insurance, financing resilient infrastructure and supporting nature-based solutions.

“Adaptation is no longer solely a public policy issue; it is increasingly a business imperative and an investment opportunity that can deliver economic, social and environmental returns,” he said.

He acknowledged the contributions of development partners to Nigeria’s climate governance, institutional capacity, technical expertise and climate financing, while calling for deeper collaboration to implement the priorities contained in the National Adaptation Plan.

Earlier, Abiola-Awe said the engagement was designed to deepen stakeholders’ understanding of the NAP, present its strategic priorities and investment opportunities, and facilitate dialogue on accelerating its implementation.

She said the workshop would also strengthen coordination among stakeholders, identify areas for collaboration and mobilise the resources required to translate the plan into tangible actions capable of improving the resilience of people, ecosystems and the Nigerian economy.

In a goodwill message, the Chief of Mission of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), Sharon Dimanche, reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to supporting Nigeria in implementing the NAP and ensuring that climate action contributes to stronger, safer and more resilient communities.

Represented by Hajara Jalo, Dimanche said the engagement provided an important platform for deepening collaboration, identifying investment opportunities and building partnerships needed to translate the vision of the NAP into tangible and lasting results for communities across Nigeria.

Participants were drawn from government institutions, the private sector, financial institutions, academia, civil society organisations and development partners, including IOM, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO).