The Resources and Environmental Policy Research Centre, Environment for Development (REPRC-EfD) at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, has launched a regional initiative aimed at strengthening climate finance systems and promoting inclusive low-carbon development across the West African subregion. This three-year project, funded by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), is being implemented by REPRC-EfD in collaboration with partners from Ghana, Sierra Leone, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, and the Environment for Development (EfD) Global Hub at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.
University Leadership Expresses Commitment
Speaking at the Stakeholders Inception Workshop in Abuja, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Nigeria, Prof. Simon U. Ortuanya, reaffirmed the institution’s commitment to the successful implementation of the project. He brought together policymakers, researchers, financial institutions, and experts to discuss strategies for mobilizing climate finance and improving access for vulnerable groups across the region. Ortuanya assured stakeholders of the university’s unwavering support in ensuring the project achieves its objectives and delivers meaningful outcomes for Nigeria and other participating countries across the African continent. He noted that climate change remains one of the greatest development challenges facing the continent, stressing the need for stronger partnerships, research-driven policies, and inclusive financial systems to support adaptation and resilience.
Project Objectives and Challenges
Also speaking at the event, the Project Team Leader and Director of REPRC-EfD, Prof. Nnaemeka Chukwuone, explained that the initiative was designed to address persistent barriers preventing African countries from accessing and deploying climate finance at the scale required to meet national climate commitments. “Climate hazards such as flooding, severe heatwaves, and prolonged droughts will continue to threaten food security, biodiversity, livelihoods, and economic stability across the region. Despite the commitments in Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), many African countries still face significant climate financing gaps,” Chukwuone added. He hinted that the current climate finance received by West African and Sahel countries covers only about seven percent of their projected needs by 2030, while countries such as Nigeria and Ghana continue to record substantial annual financing deficits.
According to the university don, they have identified weak climate-responsive fiscal policies, inadequate mobilization of public and private climate finance, and limited access to funding for grassroots actors, women-led enterprises, and small businesses as major systemic challenges confronting the subregion. Explaining further, he said the project would examine and strengthen fiscal, financial, and policy frameworks to enhance climate finance mobilization while also developing innovative financial tools and building institutional capacity for low-carbon and climate-resilient development.
Project Focus and Methodology
The project will focus on Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, and Senegal, drawing expertise from a consortium of institutions including the Nigeria Conservation Foundation, African Energy Transition Services (AETS), the Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER) at the University of Ghana, and the EfD Global Hub in Sweden. Under the project’s framework, researchers will deploy computable general equilibrium models, stakeholder surveys, political economy studies, and participatory action research to assess climate-related reforms and co-design innovative financing instruments. The Project Team Leader emphasized that the project also includes pilot-testing financial instruments with 200 MSMEs across participating countries, alongside capacity-building programs for regulators, financial institutions, and community organizations.
The implementation period for the Africa project runs from 2026 to 2028. It is expected to contribute to improved fiscal and policy frameworks, expanded climate finance mobilization, enhanced access for marginalized groups, and stronger institutional capacity for climate governance in West Africa.
Stakeholder Perspectives
Participants at the workshop highlighted the importance of inclusive climate finance systems that prioritize women, youth, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), and local communities that are often excluded from mainstream funding mechanisms. The inception workshop also provided an opportunity for the inaugural meeting of the Project Advisory Committee, chaired by the former Director of the Environment for Development (EfD) Initiative, Sweden, Professor Gunnar Kohlin.
