Unlocking Adaptation Potential: Insights into Nigeria’s climate change policies, initiatives and local actions

The report examines the disconnect between Nigeria's top-down climate adaptation frameworks and the actual practices of frontline communities. Through case studies in Ogun, Lagos, and Anambra states, it demonstrates that community-led initiatives—such as biogas production, aquaculture modifications, and traditional erosion control—are already occurring despite limited finance and technical support. The authors argue that integrating these bottom-up strategies into national policies like the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) is essential for sustained climate resilience.

• Nigeria's current climate adaptation framework relies on a 'top-down' approach that excludes frontline communities and their traditional knowledge from decision-making, creating a gap between national policy and ground-level implementation.
• Locally led adaptation (LLA) is already being practiced in Nigeria and aligns with the priority options of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), yet it remains largely undocumented and excluded from mainstream national discourse.
• Climate adaptation efforts in Nigeria are hindered by limited political will, insufficient public and private funding, and a lack of collaboration between government agencies, leading to fragmented, independent endeavors.
• Case studies reveal specific local adaptation successes: smallholder farmers in Owode, Ogun State, use biogas to conserve forests; fish farmers in Lagos use deeper boreholes and hybridisation to counter a 60% sector collapse; and rural communities in Abatete, Anambra State, employ traditional methods like planting erosion-resistant trees and using sandbags to mitigate land degradation.

APA

Ogunji, C. V., & Anieze, E. E. (2023). Unlocking Adaptation Potential: Insights into Nigeria’s climate change policies, initiatives and local actions. Africa Policy Research Institute. https://afripoli.org/unlocking-adaptation-potential-insights-into-nigerias-climate-change-policies-initiatives-and-local-actions

Chicago

Ogunji, Chinwe Victoria, and Ethelbert Elochukwu Anieze. Unlocking Adaptation Potential: Insights into Nigeria’s climate change policies, initiatives and local actions. Africa Policy Research Institute, 2023. https://afripoli.org/unlocking-adaptation-potential-insights-into-nigerias-climate-change-policies-initiatives-and-local-actions.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Ogunji |first1=Chinwe Victoria |last2=Anieze |first2=Ethelbert Elochukwu |title=Unlocking Adaptation Potential: Insights into Nigeria’s climate change policies, initiatives and local actions |publisher=Africa Policy Research Institute |date=7 August 2023 |url=https://afripoli.org/unlocking-adaptation-potential-insights-into-nigerias-climate-change-policies-initiatives-and-local-actions |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{ogunji2023unlocking, author = {Ogunji, Chinwe Victoria and Anieze, Ethelbert Elochukwu}, title = {{Unlocking Adaptation Potential: Insights into Nigeria’s climate change policies, initiatives and local actions}}, institution = {Africa Policy Research Institute}, year = {2023}, month = aug, url = {https://afripoli.org/unlocking-adaptation-potential-insights-into-nigerias-climate-change-policies-initiatives-and-local-actions}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }