NSIA Partners With NCCC To Mitigate Climate Change Risks

The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority NSIA and the National Council on Climate Change, NCCC have signed a memorandum of understanding to address the rising challenges posed by climate change and to chart a sustainable future for Nigeria.

The agreement is expected to catalyse private finance needed to achieve Nigeria’s climate and national development agenda.

Speaking on the agreement on Monday, in Abuja, the Managing Director, NSIA, Aminu Umar-Sadiq said the MoU emphasized the urgency of immediate action to address climate risks and enable the attainment of the shared objectives between both agencies.

Umar-Sadiq who stressed the need for decisive action, cited climate change as one of the greatest challenges facing the planet today, while noting that Nigeria is not immune to its devastating effects.

“We have seen first-hand the impact of climate change from extreme weather events to floods and declining agricultural yields, which have led to the loss of lives and property, as well as severe economic hardship for our people. 

“By collaborating with the National Council on Climate Change, we demonstrate our commitment to safeguarding our natural resources, protecting vulnerable communities, and fostering a low-carbon, climate-resilient economy.

“Together, we will leverage our respective strengths, knowledge, and resources to develop and implement comprehensive climate change strategies. 

“Our collaboration will span a range of areas, including development of Nigeria’s climate change framework, guidelines for the regulation of carbon emissions, development of a national carbon registry and a carbon emissions trading mechanism as well as a Climate Change Fund”, he said.

In his remarks, Dr. Salisu Dahiru, the Director General, NCCC said that the partnership is expected to catalyze private finance to accelerate Nigeria’s ambitious climate and national development agenda.

Dahiru asserted that Nigeria was investing in its future, especially in a vastly decarbonizing world by committing resources from its sovereign wealth fund to support climate action and an inclusive green economic growth.

“This partnership is a bold signal to the global audience that the Government of Nigeria is serious about its climate commitments,” he said.

He called on Nigerians to embrace the opportunities offered by climate change to build a resilient economy and improve the adaptive capacities of communities to extreme weather events, now and in the future.

Meanwhile, the NSIA also launched its maiden Impact Report(IR) which indicated that the Authority delivered impactful initiatives inline with the target outcomes for 15 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

The Impact Report released by the Authority outlines the progress made towards the attainment of its developmental and socio-economic impact in 2021.

The IR also highlights the Authority’s development agenda and impact over several years of operations as well as it’s efforts to safeguard the environment and address relevant climate-related risks and opportunities in line with best practice.

“The Impact Report is a comprehensive assessment of our investments, operations, and achievements. It presents a detailed analysis of our performance across various asset classes, our commitment to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles and highlights our contribution to Nigeria’s economic growth and development, job creation, and social welfare.

“The launch of NSIA’s Impact Report is not merely a reflection of our achievements. It is also a call to action, a challenge to ourselves and our partners to do more and do better,” the NSIA Boss said.

Highlights of some of the achievements from the manager of Nigeria’s sovereign wealth fund 2021 Impact Report span through Job creation, Agriculture, Road Projects, Health and Capacity building.

Confidence Okwuchi