Enugu State Governor, Dr. Peter Mbah, has urged more financial commitment by world leaders and multi-national organisations to help tackle the challenges of climate change, saying Enugu was already working towards making the state a Smart Green City that would drastically cut down on the state’s carbon emissions through deliberate robust climate policies and actionable initiatives.
The governor, who said this at a meeting organized by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) Global Commission for Urban SDG Finance on Thursday in Paris, the Capital of France, which attracted world leaders, financial and climate experts, including scholars, added that his administration was committed to realizing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 with the right support.
Speaking at the meeting hosted by the Mayor of Paris, Ann Hidalgo, with the First Lady of Brazil, Rosângela da Silva, Prof Kevin Urama of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Jane Burston, CEO Clean Air Fund, Gulnara Roli, UN Head of Cities Unit, Erik Berglof of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, Prof Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University who is also the SDSG founder, Prof Eugenia Uche-Anya, as well as mayors from different European, African, American, and Asian cities in attendance, Governor Mbah, who was represented by the Executive Chairman of Enugu State Capital Territory Development Authority (ECTDA), Rt. Hon Uche Anya, said that sub-nationals have crucial roles to play in mitigating the threats posed by greenhouse gases.
According to him, the challenges posed to humanity and the entire eco-system are surmountable through the right financial architecture, financing, partnership and deliberate collective action by all the players in the global sphere.
While underscoring his vision for the New Enugu Smart Green City, the governor highlighted his development strides and how the administration was deliberate in ensuring that renewable energy sources are put up in an effort to phase out fossil fuels and other dirty energy sources.
“We have taken deliberate, proactive and innovative steps in tackling the challenges of climate change in our Enugu State, and indeed, we are setting up infrastructure that will transition the state to a smart green state. This will entail huge financial commitment to invest in sustainable clean and renewable energy.
“It is our ultimate goal to focus on climate-resilient and green economy. We are positioning our state, with over four million people, to lead the charge as a sub-national, in a city known for its abundant coal to a global renewable and clean energy generator. The state will be harnessing the huge potential of solar, wind, and renewable energy sources in the coming months and years,” he added.
The highpoint of the meeting was the announcement of Bloomberg Clean Air Fund specifically tied to cities with independent credit ratings and bankable projects which Enugu Government said it hoped to benefit from having unveiled its credit worthiness and bankable projects.