2027 Green Agenda: Assessing the Climate Economy Promise and Performance of Governors Sani and Mbah

SOStainabilityWeekly

By Oke Epia, E-mail: sostainability01@gmail.com | WhatsApp: +234 8034000706

By Nnaemeka Oruh

Climate action has evolved beyond the preservation of ecological integrity and environmental protection. It has increasingly become an instrument for addressing critical developmental and socioeconomic needs, with direct implications for human survival, prosperity, and quality of life.In this regard, environmental sustainability must serve a dual purpose: safeguarding the health of our planet while advancing sustainable approaches to meeting human needs.

It follows, therefore, that we must constantly interrogate how our leaders conceptualise, develop and implement their green agendas. Beyond assessing their commitment to preserving the environment and securing the future of our planet, we must examine how effectively they are leveraging green opportunities to address pressing everyday needs, including food security, electricity, clean cooking, transportation, smart cities, disaster preparedness and healthcare.

It is important to emphasise that evaluating a leader’s green agenda must go beyond the number of environmental projects executed. It must also consider the policies, action plans, legislative frameworks and institutional structures established to drive climate action, as well as how effectively these mechanisms are translated into measurable outcomes.

Against this backdrop, this review examines the green agendas of Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State and Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State.

Governor Uba Sani — Kaduna State

Kaduna State’s green agenda under Governor Uba Sani is largely anchored on strengthening policy, legislative and institutional frameworks to provide a foundation for sustained climate action. Considering Governor Sani’s legislative background, this emphasis on institutional development is perhaps unsurprising.

Some of the key policy, legislative and governance frameworks driving the state’s green agenda include:

10-Year Climate Change Policy and Position Statement: Modelled after Nigeria’s National Climate Change Policy (2021–2030), Kaduna State’s Climate Change Policy and Position Statement provides a framework for public education, monitoring systems and sustainable development initiatives. According to Governor Sani, it is designed to prepare the state for future climate challenges.

Kaduna State Agricultural Development Fund (KADFund Law) 2025: This legislation establishes a financing mechanism to support farmers in building resilience against climate-related shocks, particularly those that threaten agricultural productivity and food security.

Kaduna State Climate Change Advisory Board Law 2026: In 2026, the state enacted legislation establishing a dedicated climate change advisory structure to strengthen institutional coordination and oversight of climate action.

Kaduna State Electricity Law: The law provides a framework for improving electricity generation and distribution, while creating provisions for renewable energy development.

Beyond these policy and legislative interventions, the Kaduna State Government has also undertaken several practical climate-related initiatives. These include but are not limited to:

Clean Cooking: The state has supported the transition to cleaner household energy through the distribution of clean cooking stoves.

In partnership with the Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL) programme, the government has also facilitated training for young people in briquette production, creating opportunities for alternative livelihoods while promoting cleaner cooking solutions.

Climate Education: Through its Greening Schools and Climate Change Education Intervention (GSCCEI) programme, Kaduna is investing in a generation of climate-conscious students across public schools. The initiative promotes climate literacy and encourages students to participate in tree planting as a means of mitigating greenhouse gas emissions.

Lithium Processing Plant: The establishment of a lithium processing plant is another significant component of Kaduna’s emerging green industrial agenda. The facility, reportedly expected to process 30,000 tonnes of lithium daily, represents an investment in a mineral that is critical to battery storage technologies and the broader renewable energy value chain.

In the recently released Subnational Climate Governance Ranking, Kaduna State was ranked third, improving thirteen places from the previous year’s ranking.

Governor Peter Mbah — Enugu State

Governor Peter Mbah’s green agenda is framed around leveraging climate action not only to address the developmental needs of Enugu but also as a vehicle for economic expansion, investment attraction and revenue generation.

This is evident in the administration’s efforts to leverage national and international opportunities to attract climate-related investments and position Enugu as an emerging destination for green economic development.

Some of the key components of the state’s green agenda include:

Governance Framework: Under Governor Mbah, Enugu State developed the Enugu State Climate Change Policy and Action Plan (ESCPAP), which was launched in 2025.

In addition, the state enacted the Enugu State Environmental Protection Law 2024, establishing a legislative foundation for environmental governance. It has also domiciled climate change responsibilities within a dedicated Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, while the State House of Assembly has established a committee to oversee climate action.

International Engagement and Climate Investment Mobilisation: Backed by its climate governance framework and institutional capacity, Enugu has been actively engaging the international climate investment community to attract investments into the state.

These efforts have resulted in Enugu joining the Under2 Coalition, a global network of subnational governments committed to ambitious climate action, as well as the Subnational Methane Action Coalition (SMAC).

The state has also participated in London Climate Action Week, where it led subnational engagement at the Nigeria Climate Investment Summit (NCIS).

Another significant development is the establishment of the Climate and Development Investment Platform (CDIP), through which Enugu advanced a proposal for a 100MW distributed solar energy investment programme valued at approximately US$200 million.

These engagements demonstrate the administration’s intention to leverage international climate partnerships and investment opportunities to advance its development priorities.

Climate Education: Climate education is another important pillar of Enugu’s green agenda. The state has pursued partnerships with civil society organisations, international institutions and UN bodies to promote climate awareness and education. These efforts have also included the co-creation of a climate education manual.

Clean Cooking and Ecosystem Restoration: Tree planting is an important component of Governor Mbah’s environmental agenda. Beyond improving the state’s green cover, the initiative is designed to support ecosystem restoration and create carbon sinks that contribute to greenhouse gas emissions mitigation.

The distribution of clean cooking stoves is also part of the state’s efforts to promote cleaner household energy and improve access to sustainable cooking solutions.

Urban Renewal, Smart Schools and Sustainable Waste Management: With an emphasis on restoring the beauty and character of the Coal City, Governor Mbah’s green agenda also incorporates sustainable waste management, the development of smart schools and an urban transformation agenda designed to give Enugu the characteristics of a modern smart city.

These initiatives reflect an attempt to integrate environmental sustainability into the state’s broader infrastructure and urban development ambitions.

Sani vs Mbah: The Convergence and Divergence

Kaduna and Enugu share a common commitment to integrating climate action into their broader development agendas. Both administrations recognise that environmental sustainability must go beyond conservation to address wider socioeconomic priorities, including energy access, climate education, food security, cleaner household energy and sustainable livelihoods. This shared philosophy is evident in their respective investments in climate governance, clean cooking interventions, tree planting, climate education and partnerships to advance environmental sustainability.

Both states also recognise the importance of establishing institutional and policy frameworks to provide direction for climate action, rather than relying exclusively on isolated environmental projects.

Ultimately, both administrations are attempting to connect environmental responsibility with economic development and improved living conditions for their people.

While their underlying commitment to integrating climate action into development is similar, the two states demonstrate different strategic orientations.

Kaduna’s green agenda is largely centred on policy and legislative institutionalisation, climate resilience and practical sectoral interventions. Its approach places considerable emphasis on building the governance structures required to sustain climate action, strengthening agricultural resilience and exploring opportunities within the renewable energy value chain.

Enugu’s approach, on the other hand, is more strongly oriented towards climate investment mobilisation, international partnerships and leveraging the green economy as an instrument for economic development and revenue generation. Its participation in international climate coalitions, engagement with the global climate investment community and proposed distributed solar investment programme illustrate this orientation.

Put differently, while Kaduna places considerable emphasis on strengthening the institutional foundations and resilience mechanisms for climate action, Enugu is more explicitly positioning climate governance as a platform for attracting investment and driving economic transformation.

Beyond 2027: What More Needs to Be Done?

While there is no doubt that both Enugu and Kaduna have established important foundations for their green agendas, considerably more needs to be done to translate these ambitions into measurable environmental, economic and social outcomes.

Beyond 2027, the green agendas of Governors Uba Sani and Peter Mbah must be sharpened and expanded. This should not be limited to the two states alone; it should also inform the expectations citizens have of everyone seeking political leadership.

Some critical areas requiring greater attention for the two States include:

1. Measurable Climate Impacts: The green agenda of both Governors must establish clear, measurable targets against which their climate performance can be assessed. For instance, how many households are expected to benefit from clean cooking interventions? How many hectares of degraded land will be restored? What percentage of the States’ energy mix is expected to come from renewable sources? How much greenhouse gas emissions reduction is expected over the next four years? How many farmers will benefit from climate-resilient agricultural programmes? How many electric vehicle charging stations will be established? What percentage of the public transportation sector will transition to sustainable and low-emission alternatives?

These questions must be supported by clearly defined targets, implementation timelines and publicly accessible progress reports.

2. Climate Finance and Budgetary Commitments: There must be a deliberate commitment to allocating a defined proportion of annual State budgets to climate action.

However, budgetary allocations alone are insufficient. They must demonstrate actual disbursement, utilisation and the environmental and socioeconomic outcomes of these investments.

3. Emissions Accountability: Both States need to demonstrate stronger commitment to measuring and publicly reporting their greenhouse gas emissions. This should include establishing state-level emissions inventories, clearly defined emissions baselines, reduction targets and regular reporting mechanisms.

Climate action must be supported by credible data and measurable outcomes rather than relying solely on the number of projects executed.

4. Disaster Preparedness and Climate Resilience: There is a need to fully document and demonstrate efforts towards disaster preparedness, management and prevention.Investments in early warning systems, flood management, erosion control, drought preparedness, climate-resilient infrastructure and community-level disaster response mechanisms must be effected.

5. Green Jobs and Economic Opportunities: Climate action should become a deliberate instrument for job creation, entrepreneurship and economic diversification.

Future green agenda must demonstrate how opportunities are being created for young people, women, farmers, small businesses and local industries. This should include support for renewable energy enterprises, recycling businesses, clean cooking value chains, sustainable agriculture and other emerging green industries.

Call to Action

Ultimately, the green agenda must not be treated as an isolated environmental responsibility but as a central component of economic planning and human development.

It is evident from the foregoing that interrogating the green agendas of those seeking political office ahead of the 2027 elections is increasingly important. Such scrutiny goes beyond determining a leader’s commitment to environmental preservation. It also reveals how effectively they understand and intend to leverage climate action to address urgent developmental challenges, create economic opportunities, and improve the quality of life of their people.

The real test of a green agenda is not simply the number of climate policies developed, international conferences attended or environmental projects announced. It is the extent to which these translate into measurable improvements in livelihoods, energy access, food security, environmental protection, economic productivity and climate resilience.

As we look towards 2027–2031, citizens must demand more than promises. They must demand clear targets, credible financing, transparent implementation and measurable outcomes.

Ask your (would-be) leaders: What is your green agenda for 2027–2031?

The 2027 Green Agenda welcomes constructive engagement from electoral candidates (executive and legislative) at the national and gubernatorial levels. Contact hello@sostainability.co.uk & africlime@gmail.com / 09121425989 / +234 703 456 0393