Nigeria: Putting local actors in the driving seat of climate finance

By the Climate Justice Resilience Fund

Food security is an increasing challenge in Nigeria, with 54% of households food insecure in 2016.

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“Local people are on the frontline of climate change and they need finance to implement adaptation initiatives and long term adaptation actions that can boost their resilience to climate change and ensure that they have a fair chance at surviving the impacts of climate change,” added [Gbemisola] Akosa [Executive Director at the Centre for 21st Century Issues (C21st)].

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Addressing the challenge of local access to the [Green Climate Fund (GCF)] is one objective of an advocacy coalition that includes C21st and Netherlands-based NGO Both ENDS.

“We need to take our partners from the South seriously,” said Daan Robben, from Both ENDS. “The ideal is that we break out of this system where big institutions from the Global North keep playing a big role and allow our partners from the South take the driver’s seat. We have to be really serious about changing this picture.”

Both ENDS seeks to help bridge the gap for those looking to access global climate finance, by connecting local voices to the processes that govern climate funding at the GCF. They do this is in partnership with local organizations like C21st in Nigeria, plus global advocacy groups Tebtebba and the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL).

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