… Says Tinubu, Nigerian delegates in Dubai for serious business, not jamboree
Minister of information and national orientation Alhaji Mohammed Idris Malagi says the federal government funded only 422 persons to the ongoing Climate Summit in Dubai, otherwise called COP-28
According to him, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and other officials on the federal government delegation are in Dubai for serious business, not a jamboree.
This was contained in a statement Monday signed by the minister.
Giving a breakdown , he said the federal government funded delegation include 32 from National Council on Climate Change , 34 from Federal Ministry of Environment , 167 from all Ministries, and 67 from Presidency.
Others are 9 from Office of the Vice President, 40 from National Assembly and Federal Parastatals/Agencies.
He said the federal government released the figure to counter misinformation about the numbers of government funded delegates and the need to provide clarity in line with a standing pledge to conduct itself with transparency and accessibility regarding public information.
While justifying Nigeria’s robust participation at COP 28, Malagi said as the biggest economy and most populous country in Africa, with a substantial extractive economy and extensive vulnerability to climate change, Nigeria has a significant stake in climate action.
He said Nigeria is already benefiting from its ongoing participation.
“COP-28 presents an array of investment and partnership opportunities for the various sectors affected by climate change, and Nigeria is already benefiting from its ongoing participation, as demonstrated by the following:
“Nigeria and Germany signed an accelerated performance agreement to expedite the implementation of the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI) to improve Nigeria’s electricity supply. The agreement was signed by Mr. Kenny Anuwe, the Managing Director and CEO of FGN Power Company, and Ms. Nadja Haakansson, Siemens Energy’s Senior Vice President and Managing Director for Africa, at a ceremony witnessed by President Tinubu and Chancellor Scholz.
“President Tinubu hosted a high-level meeting with stakeholders and investors on the Nigeria Carbon Market and the Electric Buses Rollout Programme on the margins of the COP28 climate summit.
“The President unveiled the Nigeria Carbon Market Activation Plan, co-chaired by the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Mr. Zacch Adedeji, and the Director-General of the National Council on Climate Change (NCCC), Dr. Dahiru Salisu.
“The Electric Buses program is only the first step in a series of innovative, clean, modern, and sustainable initiatives across diverse sectors, all aimed at simultaneously addressing climate change-related challenges, reducing carbon footprint, modernizing infrastructure systems, and positioning Nigeria as an attractive destination for global investments.
“Nigeria stands to benefit from the Loss and Damage Fund established during COP-27 in Egypt and formally operationalized at the opening plenary of COP-28 in Dubai. The Fund will provide substantial non-debt financing to support countries most affected by the impact of climate change. Hundreds of millions of dollars have already been pledged as contributions to the Fund.
“The President also met the President of UAE to concretize engagements between the two countries. This is aside from the bilateral talks held with several countries and multilateral partners,” the statement read.
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