Climate Pressure Mounts as Senate Queries Environment Ministry Over Limited Capital Releases in ₦65.9bn 2026 Proposal

Climate Pressure Mounts as Senate Queries Environment Ministry Over Limited Capital Releases in ₦65.9bn 2026 Proposal

As climate threats intensify across Nigeria, the Senate Committee on Environment has raised fresh concerns over funding gaps in the ₦65.96 billion 2026 budget proposal presented by the Federal Ministry of Environment, warning that inadequate capital releases could undermine critical environmental interventions.

During the budget defence session at the National Assembly, Committee Chairman, Senator Olubiyi Fadeyi, stressed that environmental challenges are no longer peripheral issues but direct threats to livelihoods, public health and national security.

The Committee noted that despite improved performance in recurrent expenditure in 2025, capital allocations suffered significant setbacks, with warrants issued but lacking actual cash backing. Lawmakers described the development as a major constraint on the Ministry’s ability to execute erosion control, pollution remediation and climate adaptation projects.

According to the Ministry’s presentation, the proposed ₦65.96 billion allocation for 2026 is largely a rollover of the 2025 budget, following guidance from the Budget Office of the Federation. However, much of the capital component is already committed to externally funded programmes such as the Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL) initiative, leaving limited fiscal space for emerging environmental emergencies.

Lawmakers warned that Nigeria’s worsening oil pollution, coastal flooding and deforestation trends require more aggressive and flexible funding structures. They therefore canvassed the establishment of a Special Intervention Fund dedicated to urgent environmental remediation and climate resilience efforts.

Minister of Environment, Hon. Balarabe Abbas Lawal, defended the Ministry’s performance, highlighting ongoing flood and erosion control projects, renewable energy programmes, forest conservation drives and implementation of the federal government’s clean cooking policy.

Lawal drew attention to the devastating impact of rising sea levels on coastal communities, revealing that some populations have been displaced due to advancing shoreline erosion. He also underscored the health risks associated with traditional cooking methods, stating that prolonged exposure to indoor smoke significantly increases respiratory illnesses among rural women.

The Committee further emphasized that meeting Nigeria’s climate finance obligations is essential to unlocking global environmental funding and strengthening partnerships under international climate frameworks.

Reaffirming its oversight mandate, the Senate pledged closer monitoring of budget implementation to ensure that allocated resources translate into measurable environmental protection outcomes.

With climate-related disasters becoming more frequent and severe, the deliberations signal growing legislative pressure on the Executive to match environmental policy commitments with adequate financial backing.