The Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND) has called for climate resilience to be placed at the centre of peacebuilding, development planning and environmental governance as climate-related pressures increasingly threaten livelihoods, community stability and human security across the Niger Delta.

The call was made at PIND’s policy roundtable on Advancing Climate Resilience, Climate-Sensitive Peacebuilding and Human Security in the Niger Delta, held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. The high-level engagement brought together policymakers, government agencies, development partners, environmental experts, researchers, civil society organisations, private-sector actors, peacebuilding practitioners, and representatives of climate-vulnerable communities.

At the roundtable, PIND launched its Policy Brief on Climate Change and Human Security in the Niger Delta, which presents evidence that flooding, coastal erosion, irregular rainfall and environmental degradation are reducing agricultural and fishing productivity, disrupting livelihoods and intensifying competition over increasingly scarce natural resources.

Delivering the welcome remarks on behalf of PIND’s Executive Director, Mr Sam Ogbemi Daibo, PIND’s Peacebuilding Programme Manager, Dr David Udofia, said climate change must no longer be treated solely as an environmental concern.

“Climate change is increasingly a livelihood, peace and human-security challenge in the Niger Delta. When farms are flooded, fishing waters are degraded, mangroves are destroyed, and families lose their sources of income, the consequences extend far beyond the environment. These pressures can deepen poverty, increase displacement, aggravate community grievances and intensify competition over scarce resources. We must therefore integrate climate resilience into peacebuilding and development planning,” Udofia said.

Participants examined practical strategies for protecting climate-sensitive livelihoods, strengthening community adaptation, improving environmental governance and preventing climate-related pressures from escalating existing conflicts.

The roundtable also featured a demonstration of PIND’s newly deployed Climate Data Filter on the Niger Delta Peace Map, which integrates climate-related information into conflict analysis and early-warning processes. The tool will enable policymakers and practitioners to identify emerging risks, strengthen anticipatory action and make timelier, evidence-based decisions.