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Nigeria, three other African countries to benefit from $690m climate finance facility – EnviroNews
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Nigeria is among four African countries set to benefit from a $690 million climate finance facility launched by the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) and the Green Climate Fund (GCF) to accelerate low-carbon development and strengthen climate resilience across the continent.
The Africa Sovereign Climate Facility (ASCF), launched on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, at a signing ceremony in South Korea, will initially support Nigeria, Angola, Benin and Côte d’Ivoire with financing, technical assistance and capacity building to address climate change impacts and implement their national climate commitments.
The facility is designed to help participating countries integrate climate considerations into national development planning while developing investment-ready projects across critical sectors, including clean energy, food and water security, health and well-being, and climate-resilient infrastructure.
Nigeria’s participation is particularly significant given its exposure to climate-related threats, including flooding, drought, desertification, coastal erosion and growing pressure on food and water resources.
Under the programme, the four countries will have access to a combination of concessional climate finance and commercial funding to support projects that advance their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and broader economic development priorities.
The Green Climate Fund is providing $280 million, while the AFC will arrange and fully fund a parallel commercial financing facility of up to $260 million, with a tenor of up to 10 years, for the participating countries through their respective Ministries of Finance.
Speaking at the launch, AFC President and Chief Executive Officer, Samaila Zubairu, said the partnership would help African governments translate their development priorities into infrastructure capable of withstanding climate pressures.
“The infrastructure we build today must both power Africa’s growth and withstand the climate pressures of tomorrow. Through this partnership with GCF, we are combining concessional finance with AFC’s project development expertise and capital to help governments turn national priorities into reliable energy, stronger food and water systems, and resilient infrastructure,” he said.
Zubairu said the success of the facility would be measured by its impact on businesses, communities and employment, stressing that climate finance should contribute to Africa’s long-term economic prosperity.
Also speaking, GCF Regional Director for Africa, Catherine Koffman, said the facility would help Nigeria and the other participating countries convert their national climate priorities into bankable projects.
She said the GCF’s $280 million contribution was designed to leverage substantial co-financing, with an initial estimate of reaching 4.5 million people and avoiding 3.4 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions.
According to the organisers, the facility is expected to deliver even broader long-term impacts, including reducing, avoiding, removing or sequestering approximately 5.78 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO₂e) over its lifetime.
It is also projected to reach about 5.2 million beneficiaries through climate adaptation interventions.
For Nigeria, the financing presents an opportunity to mobilise additional resources for climate-resilient infrastructure, renewable energy development, improved food systems and water security, while addressing the funding constraints affecting the implementation of its climate commitments.
The facility’s integrated financing model is also expected to help participating governments overcome barriers to investment by combining concessional funding with commercial capital, technical expertise and institutional capacity development.
The launch builds on the existing partnership between the AFC and GCF. In 2023, the GCF committed $253 million to the AFC Capital Partners’ Infrastructure Climate Resilient Fund (ICRF), aimed at developing climate-resilient infrastructure as an investable asset class and attracting additional institutional and private-sector investments.
The new facility comes against the backdrop of Africa’s growing vulnerability to climate change, with rising temperatures, unpredictable rainfall and increasingly frequent extreme weather events threatening livelihoods, infrastructure, food security and economic productivity.
Rapid population growth and urbanisation have further increased pressure on infrastructure and public services, underscoring the need for African countries to incorporate climate resilience into their development strategies.
Through the ASCF, the AFC and GCF seek to bridge the gap between national climate ambitions and the financing required to translate them into tangible development outcomes, with Nigeria among the first beneficiaries of the initiative.