…as NCIC Launches Climate Impact Outlook
By our reporter
Not less than 1,200 communities across 30 states, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), have been identified as highly vulnerable to flooding in 2025, raising fresh concerns over Nigeria’s climate preparedness and disaster management capacity.
This is according to findings shared during the launch of the Nigeria Climate Impact Outlook Report on Thursday in Abuja.
The report, developed by the Nigeria Climate Innovation Centre (NCIC) in collaboration with Connect Development Centre and the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), offers a data-driven projection of Nigeria’s climate future, highlighting major risks such as flooding, land degradation, and food insecurity.
Speaking at the event, the Executive Director of GIFSEP, Dr. Michael Terungwa, emphasized the urgency of action, noting the financial and human toll of past climate disasters.
“In 2012, Nigeria lost about N2.6 trillion to floods, displacing over 2.1 million people. In 2022, we lost N9 billion, according to the NBS. What will Nigeria lose in 2025 if we don’t act?
“This report is not just statistics; it’s a call to action.”
The CEO of NCIC, Bankole Oloruntoba, said the report is designed to help shift Nigeria from fragmented, reactionary responses to more coordinated, ecosystem-driven climate action.
He noted that NCIC’s work in catalyzing green entrepreneurship, building innovation pipelines, and facilitating investment readiness is not in competition with policy, but meant to complement and amplify it.
He said, “This moment is more than a report launch; it’s a rallying point for collaboration.
“At NCIC, we don’t just see ourselves as another climate actor, we are connectors between green innovators and the systems that support them.
“We believe the pathways to a greener, more resilient Nigeria will not be built in isolation. They will be built through partnership, alignment, and trust,” Oloruntoba added.
He called on stakeholders to see the report not just as a reference, but as a launchpad for action, saying, “Let today not just be about a report, but a beginning—a collective opportunity to co-build Nigeria’s climate future.”
The Country Lead for the Global Strategic Communications Council, Daniel Oladoja, said the document was not a fixed prediction but a scientific projection grounded in local data.
He said, “All models are wrong, but some are useful. This report is a probabilistic statement built on current and past policies.
“We were meticulous to ensure it reflects Nigeria’s unique realities. It was reviewed by climate experts like Prof. Ibidun Adelakun and Prof. Daniel Musa Geary to validate the science in the local context.”
Stakeholders at the event stressed the need for evidence-based policymaking, stronger early warning systems, investment in climate-smart infrastructure, and more youth inclusion in climate advocacy and innovation.
