By Francis Ajuonuma
The Cross River Government has concluded a two-day workshop to develop the state’s maiden Climate Transition Plan, aimed at attracting green investment, unlocking climate finance and strengthening climate resilience.
The workshop, which began on Wednesday and ended on Thursday in Calabar, brought together government officials, development partners and other stakeholders to develop a framework for converting the state’s forest resources and biodiversity into sustainable economic opportunities.
Governor Bassey Otu, who chairs the State Council on Climate Change, said the plan would strengthen environmental protection, create jobs, improve livelihoods and position the state to benefit from emerging opportunities in the green economy.
Otu, represented by the Speaker of the Cross River House of Assembly, Elvert Ayambem, described climate change as an urgent economic reality requiring coordinated action across government and other sectors.
He said the initiative aligned with his administration’s People First agenda and would provide a framework for integrating climate priorities into development planning.
According to him, the process would begin with four baseline assessments across the state’s 18 Local Government Areas.
The assessments are the Greenhouse Gas Inventory, Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessment, Climate Finance Landscape Assessment and State Mitigation Strategy Assessment.
Otu said the studies would establish the state’s emissions profile, identify climate vulnerabilities, determine mitigation priorities and strengthen its capacity to attract climate finance.
He added that the findings would guide the development of investment-ready projects in renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, ecotourism, waste management and nature-based solutions.
The governor noted that Cross River, which hosts more than half of Nigeria’s remaining rainforests, had a strategic role in environmental conservation and the transition to a green economy.
He urged ministries, departments and agencies, local government councils and development partners to participate actively in developing and implementing the plan.
The State Special Envoy on Climate Missions, Oden Ewa, said the initiative built on institutional foundations established through the state’s climate change and green economy legislation.
Ewa said the legislation provided the statutory basis for establishing the State Council on Climate Change and the Green Economy Commission.
He said credible data, bankable projects and accountable institutions were essential to attracting international climate finance and responsible carbon-market investments.
“The Climate Transition Plan must be more than a policy document; it must become an instrument of development, investment, and prosperity,” Ewa said.
Ewa added that the workshop had advanced initial drafts of the State Climate Change Policy and Action Plan and the Green Economy Policy and Action Plan.
He said the documents would provide a framework for integrating climate action into agriculture, infrastructure, healthcare, energy, tourism and employment.
He urged the 18 local government councils and relevant MDAs to take ownership of the process and called on development partners and financial institutions to sustain their support beyond the planning stage.
