The World Bank President, Ajay Banga, says the Bank is taking action to decisively slash methane emissions to help increase agricultural yields and improve health outcomes.

Banga said this in his address at a High-Level Segment Summit on Methane at COP28 in Dubai, UAE, a copy of which was obtained on Sunday.

He said Methane was 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide in warming the planet, making it a major driver of climate change.

“Yet, it is often subjugated to carbon dioxide, receiving less than two per cent of global climate financing. We do this at our peril.

“The good news is not all solutions require a herculean effort or a trillion-dollar price tag. Sometimes, the most impactful changes stem from our willingness to embrace the solutions that are well within our grasp.

“The frontier of methane reduction is one such area where the World Bank believes there are answers at our fingertips.

“That is why the World Bank is taking action, scaling proven and urgently needed strategies that can decisively bend the methane emission curve.”

The president said over the next 18 months, as part of a blueprint for methane reduction, the bank would help inaugurate15 national programmes that aim to slash methane emissions.

Banga said these programmes were built upon successful pilots that delivered transformative results for rice production, livestock operations, and waste management.

He said in Vietnam, rice farmers were embracing new techniques that slash methane emissions, while increasing incomes.

Banga said animal nutrition and breed management in India cut methane emissions and dramatically increased milk production.

“Simply separating organic waste in landfills in Brazil cuts nearly all the methane emissions by diverting it to provide electricity to 200,000 households.

“By deploying proven reduction methods from our blueprint, methane emissions from rice production can be reduced by up to 40 per cent, from livestock by 30 per cent, and waste by 80 per cent. The potential is huge.

“Taken together, this methane reduction blueprint could slash up to 10 million tons of methane.”

He said while these efforts would make considerable progress toward the methane goal, it would not be enough if simple and effective solutions for the emissions from the power sector were not embraced.

“That is why the World Bank has been working with Germany, Norway, the United States, and the UAE alongside the private sector to expand our long-standing efforts to significantly cut methane emissions across the whole energy value chain.”

Banga said in the fight against climate change, too often genuine impact was impeded by intractable challenges, considerable expenses, political challenges, and underdeveloped technologies.

“Methane is one rare, clear area where we know there are low-cost remedies, effective and simple solutions that can be replicated and scaled.

“But hope is not a strategy. We must act, and in doing so we can reduce emissions, enhance agricultural yields, and improve health outcomes all in one go.

“This is one shot that we should not miss,” he said.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group, has signed a declaration with the coalition of development finance institutions to promote green bond markets in Africa.

AfDB’s Group Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Ms Hassatou N’Sele, said this in a statement issued on the bank’s website.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Africa’s engagement in the green bond market currently represents less than one per cent of the more than 2.2 trillion dollar community green bond issued in 2022.

N’Sele said the institutions in the Global Green Bond Initiative (GGBI) comprised the European Investment Bank,  European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and Italy’s Cassa Depositi e Prestiti.

Others are the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation, Green Climate Fund and Germany’s KfW development bank, while PROPARCO of the AFD Group act as consortium of European development finance institutions.

The AfDB’s chief financial officer signed the declaration with representatives of the coalitions’ institutions on the sidelines of the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

N’Sele said the engagement was to tap from the Global Green Bond Initiative technical assistance programme announced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in June 2023.

”The Initiative will help private capital flow from institutional investors into climate and environmental projects in EU partner countries, increasing their access to capital.

”Providing technical assistance to green bond issuers in emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs), and crowding in private investors through a dedicated de-risked fund.

”This will act as an anchor investor in green bonds issued in EMDEs.

“The anticipated impact can be up to 15-20 billion euro in green investments,” she said.

N’Sele said the partners supported the origination of green bonds, development and identification of pipelines of green projects, and the development of credible and coherent green bond frameworks.

“This joint declaration among us to collaborate on technical assistance on green bonds in Africa is our commitment to work together and it is significant and impactful.

”There cannot be impactful development in Africa without vibrant local capital markets,” the AfDB official said.

N’Sele highlighted the AfDB’s engagements in the green bond market, including issuing over 10 billion dollar worth of green and social bbondsin 2022 to support sustainable progress across Africa.

“Let’s help Africa fully leverage the power of green bonds, and we can contribute together towards a sustainable future for Africans,” she said.

Mr Stefano Signore of the European Commission’s partnerships directorate, described the partnership with the AfDB as an important milestone in efforts to mobilise green bonds in emerging developing economies.

Also, representative of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) expressed hope that the partnership would contribute to the intensification of climate and environmentally relevant projects.

”We hope to also contribute to pipelines that can set off the mobilisation of the global green bond initiative.” 

President Bola Tinubu and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz were witnesses to the signing of an accelerated performance agreement in Dubai on the Siemens power project in Nigeria.

The agreement was signed on the side-line of the on-going 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP28 by Mr Kenny Anuwe, Managing Director of FGN Power Company on behalf of Nigeria.

Ms Nadja Haakansson, Siemens Energy’s Senior Vice-President and Managing Director for Africa signed on behalf of the German company.

Speaking after signing the agreement, Anuwe highlighted Siemens Energy’s effective delivery of crucial equipment worth more than 63 million Euros to Nigeria since the commencement of the project.

This includes 10 units of 132/33KV mobile substations; three units of 75/100MVA transformers, and seven units of 60/66MVA transformers, currently being installed by FGN Power Company at various sites.

The Dubai agreement was signed to expedite the implementation of the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI) to improve Nigeria’s electricity supply.

The PPI, formerly known as the Nigeria Electrification Roadmap Initiative, was the outcome of the visit by former German Chancellor Angela Merkel to Abuja in August 2018.

An agreement was signed between the governments of Nigeria and Germany in 2019 to improve Nigeria’s power sector.

Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Chief Ajuri Ngelale, stated on Friday in Abuja that since assumption of office, Tinubu had advocated the accelerated realisation and expansion of the PPI.

To achieve this, the project has been a major focal point in three rounds of bilateral discussions at meetings between President Tinubu and the German Chancellor in New Delhi, in Abuja and in Berlin.

The Dubai agreement will facilitate the modernisation and expansion of Nigeria’s electric power transmission grid with full supply, delivery and installation of Siemens-manufactured equipment within 18 to 24 months, Ajuri stated.

It will ensure project sustainability and maintenance with full technology transfer and training of Nigerian engineers at the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), he added.

The project will also focus on identified load demand centres with particular emphasis on economic and industrial hubs nationwide and the execution of new 330kV and 132/33KV substations in target load centres with economic priority.

These are in addition to thousands of kilometres of overhead transmission lines to connect new substations with existing ones, Ajuri also stated.