How Nigeria can attract trillions of naira from climate finance – PUTTRU

With the proper structure and right policies, Nigeria and indeed other African countries can attract trillions of naira from the climate finance market. This was made known by Monica Maduekwe, the founder and chief executive officer of PUTRRU, Africa’s frontline platform interfacing between the Development Finance Institutions, DFIs and the energy market in Africa.

According to her, during a press conference to analyse the gains of COP28, “As the world grapples with the urgency of climate action, the spotlight is once again on global efforts to finance renewable energy projects, particularly in developing nations like Nigeria. During the 28th Conference of Parties (COP28), experts and stakeholders gathered to address the growing disparity between the pledged size of climate financing and the actual inflows for countries facing the impacts of climate change, such as Nigeria.”

Maduekwe underscored the alarming fact that, over the last two decades, the global renewable energy sector has attracted approximately $3 trillion in investments, with Africa receiving a mere 2%, as cited by the President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Akinwumi Adesina.

She explained that one of the key challenges identified at the macro level is the scarcity of capital, because in the global landscape, capital tends to flow to certain regions, favouring Latin America and Southeast Asia, while Africa lags behind.

The press conference which emphasised the need for targeted public policy and government initiatives to attract capital to regions that need it the most equally highlighted the crucial factors that make capital flow to certain areas, including a growing industrial base, domestic capital contributing to growth, and a sufficient level of security and protection of property and lives.

According to her, successful project development requires a thorough study of investment opportunities, risk identification and mitigation, clear partnerships (both public and private), and a well-defined financial structure.

On the collaboration between PUTTRU and the National Action Committee on the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (NAC-AfCFTA) being a key initiative, representative of NAC-AfCFTA at the conference, Amie Alex-Irobi, who is the Power Infrastructure and Services Coordinator, noted that industrialisation in Nigeria would need huge capital and expressed her hope that climate finance will be attracted into the economic sectors to realise the objectives of Nigeria in the AfCFTA.

She noted that NAC-AfCFTA’ s mission to bolster economic sectors in Nigeria, particularly in ensuring available, reliable, and affordable energy, aligns with the strategy of PUTTRU in trade and investment facilitation.