Tinubu Urges United Global Leadership To Tackle Climate Crisis Ahead Of COP30.
President Bola Tinubu has called on world leaders to unite with courage and unwavering commitment in the global fight against climate change, stressing that the worsening crisis requires collective and sustained action.
Speaking during a high-level virtual summit convened by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Tinubu underscored the importance of global solidarity. The meeting brought together 17 national leaders from major economies and climate-vulnerable nations, aiming to accelerate climate ambition ahead of COP30, which will be hosted in Brazil.
“The global climate emergency demands our collective, courageous and sustained leadership,” Tinubu said. Reaffirming Nigeria’s commitment, he emphasised the country’s resolve to pursue climate action as a strategic opportunity, not a developmental burden. “For Nigeria, the urgency of this moment is clear: we view climate action not as a cost to development, but as a strategic imperative,” he stated.
Participants in the summit included leaders from China, the European Union, climate-vulnerable states, and influential regional blocs such as the African Union (AU), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS). The unified message from the dialogue was clear: climate action is moving forward with renewed urgency and determination.
President Tinubu used the platform to outline Nigeria’s Energy Transition Plan (ETP), a strategic roadmap aimed at achieving net-zero emissions by 2060. The plan targets five critical sectors—power, cooking, transportation, oil and gas, and industry—and outlines a financing requirement of over $410 billion to meet these goals.
“We are, therefore, in the process of aligning our regulatory environment, fiscal incentives, and institutional frameworks to ensure that energy access, decarbonisation, and economic competitiveness proceed in lockstep,” Tinubu explained. “We are also taking leadership on Energy Access.”
He highlighted Nigeria’s role in the Mission 300 initiative, a bold programme launched in collaboration with the World Bank and African Development Bank (AfDB), aiming to provide electricity to 300 million Africans by 2030.
The summit forms part of a broader mobilisation strategy led by Guterres and President Silva to reinforce global commitments under the Paris Agreement and generate momentum for enhanced national climate action plans ahead of COP30.
In a press briefing following the meeting, Secretary-General Guterres praised the summit’s diversity and significance, stating: “As we heard today, the world is moving forward, full speed ahead. No group or government can stop the clean energy revolution.”
Guterres urged developed nations to deliver a credible roadmap at COP30 for mobilising $1.3 trillion annually by 2035 to support developing countries. He further called on wealthier nations to fulfil their pledge to double adaptation finance to at least $40 billion per year by the end of 2025.
He concluded by emphasising the need for innovative financing solutions, particularly to support the Loss and Damage Fund, and pledged to maintain the momentum with a special event scheduled for September in the run-up to COP30.