Modupe Gbadeyanka
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Nigerian government is looking at the possibility of issuing the third tranche of green bond worth N25 billion to fund projects that are friendly to the environment.
In 2017, Nigeria became the first African country to sell green bonds to investors and the paper worth N10.7 billion was auctioned to subscribers. Two year after, it sold N15 billion in Series II.
On Thursday, February 6, 2020, the Minister of Environment, Mr Mohammad Mahmood Abubakar, was at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) in Lagos, where he was honoured with the closing gong ceremony.
While addressing the market, he said federal government was looking at launching the Series III of the green bond programme.
“We are moving up in the launch. We want to embark on more projects that are climate sensitive that will help in eliminating climate problems,” the Minister said.
Continuing, he said, “Green project are what we need today because of the climate issues we are facing today.
“We need to change our environment through solid waste management, turning waste to wealth, waste to resources; these are all the things we need green bond to finance.”
“We are moving to smart agriculture to produce more food with minimal impact on the environment,” Mr Abubakar further said.
He noted that, “We are moving to smart agriculture to produce more food with minimal impact on the environment.”
The Minister said proceeds from the green bond will be used to finance power, afforestation, deforestation water, energy, agriculture among other projects, adding that the exercise will further demonstrate the government’s commitment to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent unconditional, and 45 percent conditional by 2030, as outlined under the Paris Agreement signed on September 21, 2016.
He described the green bond and the issue of climate change as defining matters of the moment, adding that time was ripe for Nigeria to convert waste into wealth.
Green bonds are any type of instrument where the proceeds are exclusively applied to finance or re-finance, in part or in full, new and/or existing eligible green projects that align with the four core components of the Green Bond Principles (GBP).
