By Ismail Abdulaziz
President Bola Tinubu has approved the establishment of a committee to oversee the Green Economic Initiative, known as the Presidential Committee on Climate Action and Green Economic Solutions.
Tinubu also approved the appointment of Chief Ajuri Ngelale as Special Envoy on Climate Action and will retain his role as the Special Adviser to the President on Media & Publicity.
This is contained in a statement by Mr Segun Imohiosen, Director, Information & Public Relations, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, on Sunday in Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that this is part of a strategic move of the President to ensure the advancement of his administration’s climate and green economic initiatives.
The committee will coordinate and oversee all the policies and programmes on climate action and green economic development.
This is to remove the constraints to coordination, foster a whole-of-government approach to climate-action programmes and provide an efficient governance architecture.
It will ensure that all the relevant institutions in the sector are plugged into the President’s vision and are collectively implementing the Renewed Hope Agenda on climate action.
The committee consists of President Bola Tinubu – Chairman; Balarabe Abbas Lawal (Minister of Environment) – Vice-Chairman; and Ajuri-Obari Ngelale (Special Adviser) – Secretary/Special Presidential Envoy.
The members are Lazarus Angbazo (CEO, InfraCorp); Salisu Dahiru (CEO, NCCC); Michael Ohiani (CEO, ICRC); Aisha Rimi (CEO, NIPC); and Aminu Umar-Sadiq (CEO, NSIA).
Others are Yusuf Maina-Bukar (CEO, NAGGW); Abdullahi Mustapha (CEO, ECN); Abba Abubakar Aliyu (CEO, REA); Uzoma Nwagba (CEO, CrediCorp) and Khalil Halilu (CEO, NASENI).
Fatima Shinkafi (CEO, SMDF); Bala Bello (Deputy Governor, CBN); Lolade Abiola (UN SE4ALL); Teni Majekodunmi (NCCC Adviser) and Representative, (Federal Ministry of FCT) as members.
Other representative members are Federal Ministries of Finance; Power; Industry, Trade & Investment; Water Resources; and Agriculture & Food Security.
The committee members also include representatives of the Federal Inland Revenue Service and the Nigeria Customs Service.
The committee shall, among other functions, identify, develop, and implement innovative non-oil & non-gas climate action initiatives.
It will coordinate all the activities of relevant federal institutions towards the attainment of all agreed climate action and green economic objectives and non-oil/non-gas ambitions of the federal government.
It will also collaborate with all the relevant government, sub-national governments, non-government, and civil society entities towards the attainment of the climate action objectives and ambitions of the federal government.
In the same vein, it will collaborate with national governments and multilateral institutions towards the attainment of the climate action objectives and carbon market ambitions of the federal government.
The committee wiil also monitor, evaluate and guide the progress of all climate action and renewable energy projects and activities of the federal government.
Other functions include: ”Track and guide the implementation of initiatives and developments conducted by the Energy Transition Working Group.
”Supervise the work of the Presidential Steering Committee on Project Evergreen.
”Prepare a half-yearly green ambitions update, covering all associated climate action achievements of the Federal Government.”
Imohiosen said that Tinubu remained committed to achieving Nigeria’s green economy objectives on the path of a just energy transition while unlocking new investments in this critical sector.
(NAN)