Stakeholders drawn from Nigeria’s financial regulatory agencies, government institutions and the private sector have endorsed regulatory reforms aimed at unlocking domestic investment for the country’s emerging carbon market.
The call was made during a policy validation workshop held under the Policy and Regulatory Innovations for Scaling Markets (PRISM) Nigeria Initiative, themed “Unlocking Domestic Finance for Carbon Markets.”
The meeting brought together financial regulators, government officials and market participants to review priority reforms designed to integrate carbon markets into Nigeria’s domestic financial system.
In his keynote address, the senior special assistant to the President on Climate Finance and Stakeholder Engagement, Ibrahim Shelleng, described the workshop as timely, saying Nigeria must move beyond policy formulation to implementation.
He said climate finance should not be viewed only as international funding but should also include domestic resources directed towards climate mitigation and adaptation.
According to him, strengthening domestic financing will enable Nigeria to accelerate climate projects without relying solely on lengthy international funding processes.
“Domestic finance brings ownership, and it brings speed. Our communities cannot wait two to three years for international validation processes; we must look inward to raise the finance our climate projects need,” Shelleng said.
Also speaking, the Director of Energy, Transportation and Infrastructure at the National Council on Climate Change (NCCC), Michael Ivenso, said carbon markets present a major opportunity to unlock financing for Nigeria’s clean cooking sector.
He noted that the sector could positively impact about 45 million Nigerians by 2030 if supported by an enabling regulatory environment.
Ivenso explained that although carbon credits provide an alternative source of financing, they must be recognised as tradable financial instruments to encourage greater investment from domestic financial institutions.
He also called on development finance institutions to play a more active role in supporting the growth of Nigeria’s carbon market.
Speaking on recent progress, Ivenso disclosed that Nigeria has issued eight Letters of Authorisation (LoAs) since May, describing the development as a significant milestone in strengthening the country’s carbon market framework.
He stressed the importance of establishing a credible monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) system to ensure the integrity of carbon assets and boost investor confidence.
According to him, transparent measurement and verification of emissions reductions will be critical to attracting sustainable investment into the sector.
The PRISM Nigeria Initiative is implemented by the Clean Cooking Alliance (CCA) in partnership with the Nigeria Off-Grid Market Acceleration Programme (NoMAP) and the Global Off-Grid Solar Association (GOGLA), in collaboration with the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Climate Finance and Stakeholder Engagement and the Nigerian Alliance for Clean Cookstoves.
The initiative seeks to ensure that carbon-linked revenues are recognised as investable assets capable of attracting local financing for clean cooking, distributed renewable energy and nature-based projects across the country.