By Abbas Nazil
Osun State has emerged as one of Nigeria’s fastest-rising subnational climate leaders, climbing from 30th to 6th position nationally, following a year of transformative climate governance.
This milestone was highlighted by the Director-General and Special Envoy on Climate Change and Renewable Energy, Prof. Chinwe Obuaku-Igwe, during her goodwill message at the 11th Lagos International Climate Change Summit themed “Blue Economy, Green Money: Financing Africa’s Coastal Resilience and Ocean Innovation.”
Representing Governor Ademola Jackson Nurudeen Adeleke, Prof. Obuaku-Igwe celebrated Osun’s remarkable progress, noting that the state’s transformation began from a point of having no climate structure to becoming a national example of subnational climate leadership.
She revealed that Osun achieved its current standing within twelve months of focused reforms and the creation of the Osun State Department of Climate Change.
According to her, the success was driven by strong political will, clear vision, and institutionalized climate governance.
The state’s major accomplishments include the domestication of the National Climate Change Act, the establishment of a greenhouse gas accounting system, development of a carbon economy blueprint, introduction of a climate education book for schools, and women and youth-focused climate entrepreneurship programmes.
Prof. Obuaku-Igwe emphasized that Osun views climate action as both a duty and a moral responsibility.
She presented the state’s Climate Policy Documents and Education Book to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, commending Lagos for its leadership and subnational collaboration.
Governor Sanwo-Olu lauded Osun’s achievements, announcing Lagos’s plan to launch Green Bonds and its representation at COP30 in Brazil.
Prof. Obuaku-Igwe concluded that climate governance is not competition but collaboration.
She asserted that when states like Lagos and Osun unite, Africa’s sustainable future becomes inevitable.