The Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has emphasized Nigeria’s comparative advantage in attracting and harnessing potential investments, particularly amidst the ongoing 28th meetings of the United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP28) in Dubai, UAE.
Speaking after addressing world leaders at the World Climate Action Summit, Okonjo-Iweala urged Nigeria to seize the opportunity presented by substantial pledges, including Germany’s commitment of $100 million.
“This is the time for us (Nigeria) to harness the investments that are potentially out there. We must grab a slice of that $100 million Germany is promising,” Okonjo-Iweala asserted, underlining the importance of positioning Nigeria to attract investment flows resulting from the climate commitments being made at COP28.
The WTO official highlighted the imperative for Nigeria to intensify efforts in developing and implementing its Energy Transition Plan (ETP). Nigeria has outlined ambitious targets, planning to allocate $1.9 trillion between 2022 and 2060 across five sectors to meet the goals of its ETP.
One of Nigeria’s priorities at COP28 is to secure increased financial support from investors to facilitate the implementation of the ETP and other climate actions within the country.
During the COP28 opening plenary on Thursday, a historic agreement was reached with the adoption of the inclusion of the loss and damage operationalization fund in the summit’s agenda. This development prompted countries to make significant pledges in solidarity with the new fund, with over $450 million pledged by countries on the first day of the summit.
Okonjo-Iweala sees immense opportunities for Nigeria in the current global climate discourse, particularly in the areas of solar, wind, hydrogen, and other climate-smart initiatives. She stressed the need for Nigeria to position itself to access funding for these initiatives, given the growing momentum of financial pledges by world leaders at COP28.
Addressing the energy transition plan, Okonjo-Iweala acknowledged the importance of utilizing gas as a transition fuel for Nigeria, recognizing the country’s status as a developing nation with a significant population of economically disadvantaged individuals. However, she urged prompt action, noting that Nigeria should start the transition process now to tap into the available financial resources.
Highlighting recent commitments, she mentioned the UAE’s announcement of a $30 billion fund for investment and urged Nigeria to leverage such opportunities. She emphasized the importance of accessing investments for green hydrogen, not only for Nigeria’s benefit but also to contribute to global efforts in sustainable energy.
“…we are still a developing country with many poor people. But we should start now,” she said.
“Let us not stay behind, let’s try to grab the investments that are willing to be made now. You heard today that the UAE announced a $30 billion fund for investment so we must tap into that. We must tap into the one from the US to start building up green hydrogen not only for ourselves but also for others.”
