In response to the funding constraints of River Basin Authority (NBA) member countries, the African Development Bank (AfDB) is targeting Green Climate fund to assist the basin, and fight the adverse effects of climate change within the region.
The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is a fund founded as a mechanism to assist developing countries in adaptation and mitigation practices to counter climate change.
Suleiman Adamu, minister of water resources, while doing breakdown of the cost of implementation of the Programme of the Integrated Development and Adaptation to Climate Change (PIDACC) of the NBA countries during a meeting of member countries in Abuja, said, “The total cost of the implementation of this programme is $273.7 million.”
According to Adamu, the expected contribution from donors is $161. 8 million, adding however, that there is funding gap of $111.90 million or 40 percent of the PIDDAC amount that is not sourced.
Reacting to this development, Dagamaissa Abdoulaye, manager, environment and sustainable development division of the AfDB, told BusinessDay that, “the ADB is already committed to putting lots of resources to the River Basin project and we are also trying to get resources from Green Climate funds and other resources for bilateral and multilateral donors.
“We know that the Niger Basin has a lot of problems, and this is why we are meeting now.”
Also in her response, executive secretary of NBA, Toupta Boguena, said member countries initiated a programme of the PIDACC to contribute to the improving the resilience of ecosystems of the Niger River and the populations through sustainable management of natural resources.
It would be noted that the first implementation programme of the NBA was planned from 2016-2024.
The executive secretary explained further, “The member countries have taken important decision in adopting the operational plan that will allow all the countries comprising the basin to make contributions that would save the lives of 130 million people that occupy the river basin.”
This is why we are having the round table with the partners so that they would continue to contribute to our project in the whole NIger River Basin.
The member countries have also pledged that they are going to pay 10 percent of all the projects that have been put into the nine different countries of Niger Basin Authorities.
In addition, they are going to sign agreement with the African Development Bank to also put in money to ran the first programme which concentrates on climate change and sustenance of the well being and livelihood of those who occupy the River basin.
