Financing Net Zero Carbon Buildings in Nigeria

Nigeria faces a significant housing shortage of 17 million units, with a projected need for 700,000 units annually by 2050. The report finds that the policy environment for net zero carbon buildings is fragmented, lacking an overarching national strategy. While some financial instruments like concessional loans and green bonds are well-established, many others remain nascent or unused. The most severe barriers are political (lack of regulations and standards) and financial (lack of affordable finance and awareness of funding). The report recommends five priority areas: embodied carbon and materials, appliances and lighting, cooling, electricity generation, and clean cooking, proposing specific financial and policy pathways to scale these solutions.

• Nigeria has a critical housing deficit of 17 million units and is expected to require 700,000 new units every year until 2050.
• The policy landscape for net zero carbon buildings in Nigeria is fragmented, with no single overarching strategy, although various federal policies contain relevant provisions.
• Stakeholders identify political and financial barriers as the most severe obstacles to net zero building. Political barriers include a lack of building regulations and information standards, while financial barriers center on a lack of affordable finance and awareness of funding options.
• Market readiness barriers, such as limited technical expertise and a lack of supply for technical products, are considered highly important and slow the deployment of net zero buildings.
• Nigeria possesses one of the most advanced green bond markets in Sub-Saharan Africa, though activity is concentrated in sovereign and corporate bonds rather than municipal or state levels.
• Of the 44 financial instruments in the CCFLA taxonomy, 17 are active in Nigeria's net zero carbon building sector, but about half are nascent or early-stage and deployed on a small scale.
• The report identifies five high-impact focus areas for mitigation: embodied carbon and materials, appliances and lighting, cooling, electricity generation, and clean cooking.
• City-level governance is largely unfeasible in Nigeria because cities are fragmented into multiple Local Government Authorities (LGAs) without coordinating municipal bodies, making state-level interventions more effective.
• There is a widespread perception among stakeholders that net zero carbon building measures are more expensive than conventional construction, though the report argues this is not necessarily true as costs can be reduced through scale and innovation.

APA

Beavor, A., Khan, S., Makarem, N., Obasiohia, B. O., Oketa, N. J., & Fernandes, P. D. A. (2023). Financing Net Zero Carbon Buildings in Nigeria. Climate Policy Initiative. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Financing-Net-Zero-Carbon_Full-Report.pdf

Chicago

Beavor, Andreas, Samia Khan, Naji Makarem, Benneth Obinna Obasiohia, Nnanna Joemartins Oketa, and Pedro de Aragão Fernandes. Financing Net Zero Carbon Buildings in Nigeria. Climate Policy Initiative, 2023. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Financing-Net-Zero-Carbon_Full-Report.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Beavor |first1=Andreas |last2=Khan |first2=Samia |last3=Makarem |first3=Naji |last4=Obasiohia |first4=Benneth Obinna |last5=Oketa |first5=Nnanna Joemartins |last6=Fernandes |first6=Pedro de Aragão |title=Financing Net Zero Carbon Buildings in Nigeria |publisher=Climate Policy Initiative |date=October 2023 |url=https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Financing-Net-Zero-Carbon_Full-Report.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{beavor2023financing, author = {Beavor, Andreas and Khan, Samia and Makarem, Naji and Obasiohia, Benneth Obinna and Oketa, Nnanna Joemartins and Fernandes, Pedro de Aragão}, title = {{Financing Net Zero Carbon Buildings in Nigeria}}, institution = {Climate Policy Initiative}, year = {2023}, month = oct, url = {https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Financing-Net-Zero-Carbon_Full-Report.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }