ActionAid Nigeria has raised concerns over the growing impact of Nigeria’s debt burden and climate crisis on women, girls, children and frontline communities, calling for urgent government action to address the twin challenges. The organisation, in collaboration with Euphrates Climate Foundation and other partners, made the call in Abuja while reacting to ActionAid’s international report, Debt Fuels the Climate Crisis: How the Finance Flows.
Debt Repayments to Consume Over Half of Government Revenue in 2026
The report found that the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries are spending nearly 25 times more on debt repayments than on climate action, while 93.5 per cent are either in debt crisis or at significant risk of debt distress. According to ActionAid, the situation has direct implications for Nigeria, with the report projecting that the country’s debt repayments will consume more than half of government revenue in 2026.
It also noted that despite Nigeria being Africa’s largest fossil fuel producer, nearly 40 per cent of the population still lacks access to electricity, raising concerns about the country’s capacity to adequately finance climate adaptation, healthcare, education, renewable energy and flood protection.
Severe Impact on Women and Girls
The organisation said the impact was particularly severe on women and girls, who often bear increased unpaid care responsibilities during climate-related disasters and periods of economic hardship. It added that women may have to travel farther to access water, reduce their food intake when resources become scarce and shoulder additional household responsibilities, while girls could be forced out of school when family incomes decline.
ActionAid also cited the experience of Finegirl, a 59-year-old farmer, mother and grandmother from the Niger Delta, who reportedly recalled when rivers provided fish, farms produced better yields and communities had access to clean water. The organisation said oil pollution had contaminated rivers and undermined farming and fishing, demonstrating how environmental degradation and climate pressures could destroy livelihoods and deepen poverty.
Global South Paying 225 Times More in Debt Repayments
Globally, the report said, countries in the Global South were paying about 225 times more in debt repayments than they received in grant-based climate finance, adding that much of the climate finance provided to developing countries was in the form of loans.
ActionAid Nigeria therefore called for the cancellation and restructuring of unsustainable debt, increased grant-based climate finance and a fairer global debt system. The organisation also urged the government to strengthen domestic financing for climate adaptation and resilience, including sustainable agriculture, renewable energy and flood prevention. It called for greater transparency in public debt and climate finance, with meaningful participation of women, young people, persons with disabilities and affected communities in decision-making.
Call for Investment in Women-Led Green Enterprises
The Country Director of ActionAid Nigeria, Andrew Mamedu, said climate justice should focus on people whose livelihoods and futures were being threatened by climate and economic pressures. He urged the government to invest in women-led green enterprises and provide young people and women with the skills, technology, finance and market access needed to participate in renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, recycling and other green sectors.
Mamedu said countries should not have to “borrow their way out of a climate crisis,” stressing the need to address unsustainable debt, strengthen climate financing and protect vulnerable communities. The organisation’s recommendations underscore the urgent need for policy shifts to safeguard Nigeria’s most affected populations from the compounding effects of debt and climate change.
