President Bola Tinubu has launched the Renewed Hope Climate Change Awareness Tour (REHCCAT), a nationwide campaign aimed at deepening climate resilience, attracting green investments and positioning Nigeria as a leader in Africa’s low-carbon transition.
Tinubu unveiled the initiative on Tuesday at the State House
in Abuja. He was represented by Balarabe Abbas Lawal, minister of environment.
Describing the tour as a “national call to action”, the
president said the initiative would move climate conversations from conference
halls to local communities.
He said climate change is no longer a distant threat but a
present challenge affecting farmers battling desert encroachment in the north,
coastal communities facing erosion in the south and businesses grappling with
rising energy costs and supply chain disruptions.
Tinubu, however, described the crisis as an opportunity for
economic transformation.
“Nigeria stands at a defining moment. The global shift to
low-carbon development is accelerating,” he said.
“Capital is moving. Markets are evolving. Nations that
position themselves wisely today will lead tomorrow, and we intend to be one of
them.”
The president said the tour would engage governors,
traditional rulers, youth, innovators, farmers and financial institutions to
identify bankable climate projects and strengthen Nigeria’s capacity to
mobilise climate finance at scale.
He noted that Nigeria’s nationally determined contributions
(NDCs) must translate from policy commitments into tangible investments and
measurable outcomes.
“Climate finance is not charity; it is strategic investment.
Climate resilience is not optional, it is national security,” he said.
Tinubu urged state governments to drive green growth and
calling on the private sector to invest in sustainable solutions.
In his remarks, Lawal said Nigeria had laid a legal
foundation for climate action with the enactment of the Climate Change Act
2021, which provides a framework for carbon budgeting and sets the country on a
pathway to net-zero emissions by 2060.
He said the next phase requires deeper implementation at
subnational levels through performance rankings, institutional reforms and
inter-state collaboration.
According to the minister, the ministry has partnered with
states to appoint subnational directors of climate change and establish climate
desks across ministries, departments and agencies.
Lawal also highlighted youth-focused initiatives, including
the Eco-School Initiative, the Youth Climate Innovation Hub and the
Uni-Go-Green Initiative, designed to equip young Nigerians with skills in
renewable energy, sustainable agriculture and green enterprise.
Yussuf Olatunji Kelani, chairman of the REHCCAT committee
and special assistant to the president on climate change matters, said the tour
would cover Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, beginning with two strategic
states per zone in its first phase.
He said each stop would feature policy dialogues with
governors and lawmakers, town hall meetings with community stakeholders,
technical roundtables with development partners and innovation showcases.
“This is a whole-of-government and whole-of-society
approach. We are taking climate action into markets, farms, classrooms, and
policy chambers,” Kelani said.
At the event, Tinubu also named Ibrahim Shelleng, senior
special assistant on climate change matters, and Olamide Fagbuji, special
assistant on climate change financing, as co-chairmen of the tour committee
alongside Kelani.
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