FG, private sector partnership to drive economy – Osinbajo
…. Nigeria launches N20bn 1st tranche Green Bond in March
The federal government has assured on its commitment to sustain the private sector partnership, saying it was pertinent to drive Nigeria’s economy.
Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo stated this on Thursday at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) Lagos, Green bonds capital market investors conference titled “Green bonds investing in Nigeria’s sustainable development” Osinbajo said that the government has many developmental programmes tied to infrastructural developments, but its lean resources would not be enough to address all the infrastructural deficits, and this explains why partnership with private sector has remained imperative.
The vice president said that the green bond will target increase in government spending on long term infrastructural projects development, increase in job creation, money making opportunity for investors in the instruments as well as creating better living standards for the people. He said that the federal government’s green bonds is the first African sovereign green environment bond , addressing challenges of climate change and tapping into new categories of both local and foreign investors.
He said that the need for green bond was meant to address challenges which attend environmental depletion and its attendant negative consequences. He cited that environment challenge posed by drying up of Lake Chad effected irrigation of arable land while farmers keep fighting over marginal arable land in the Lake Chad basin. Environment impact, he said that reduced Lake Chad to mere 10 per cent of its normal size. The Nigerian acting president lauded the Nigerian Stock Exchange for nurturing the initiative of Green bond, adding that environmental financing provides an opportunity to deepen the capital market and also lift living standards of the people.
He said that the green bond first tranche of N20 billion expected to be launched in March, would be deployed to key government infrastructures developments contained in 2017 budget. Such infrastructural developments which addresses need of sustainable environment include , providing 20,000 homes with renewable energy production, like was done in wura, suburb of Federal capital territory (FCT)Abuja, provision of electricity to 37 federal universities and 79 general hospitals.
Minister of environment and newly elected Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations, Amina Mohammed, allayed fears of non-sustainability of the green bond also termed climate or environment bond, as she resumes at the United Nations next week.nAccording to her, government is a continuum and the minister of state for environment likely to step into her shoes will keep the green initiative going. Mohammed said that Green Bonds present an opportunity for Nigeria to begin to achieve the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), following the constitution of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change charged with determining projects which the Green Bonds will fund, part of Paris agreement signed by Mr. President.
Mohammed said that the Government’s new proposed Economic Recovery and Growth Plan identifies the Green Bonds as one of the alternative sources of financing. The Plan, she said also has significant overlaps with Nigeria’s NDCs on objectives for Power, Transport and Agriculture. “For instance, in the power sector target includes 13,000 MWs of off grid solar projects; in transport – implementing schemes that reduce the incidence of cars by introducing and encouraging the use of buses.” Mohammed said “Attracting climate resources to these interventions expands funding that will be available to our economy. All these are meant help us achieve a target of 450 m tones in emissions reductions.”
