GREEN, THE COLOUR of growth and sustainability. As globalization expands, so does its pitfalls–climate change. With this precedent side effect, the world scrambles to quickly adopt sustainable technologies and techniques in order to combat or mitigate its growth. As such, countries are giving more attention to green tech capacity and Clean Energy Technology (CET) building. Amidst this scramble for earth preservation and green jobs creation by other countries—one question remains, where does Nigeria–the giant of Africa stand?

“(In Nigeria), well-designed climate policies can create 12 million green job opportunities by the year 2035.” – — Nigeria Ministry of Environment/ILO/UNDP

In a country that still has less than 10,000-megawatt electricity supply and is still largely dependent on fossil fuel use, Nigeria still has a long way to go. The big question is, are we ready to give green jobs more popularity by adopting and fostering sustainable technology and goals regardless of the disadvantages like high monetary cost? I think we are. Talks on green jobs creation have been happening since the early 2000s. Nigeria has since implemented eco-friendly policies like waste management policies and others which has seen a decrease in the country’s pollution.

With more than 70 million unemployed Nigerian youths job searching, Nigeria is definitely looking into ways for job creation and green jobs promotion is part of the plan. According to research carried out by the Nigerian Ministry of Environment in conjunction with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Development Programme, it was found that well-designed climate policies can create 12 million green job opportunities by the year 2035. This shows that if Nigeria can overcome the challenges green jobs creation presents, she can create a better and more sustainable economy for her citizens. Nigeria, a country that has 39.1 per cent of its citizens living below the poverty line—green jobs might be the saviour for her citizens.

“If Nigeria can overcome the challenges green jobs creation presents, she can create a better and more sustainable economy for her citizens”

There are quite a number of challenges that might pose as speed bumps in the creation of more green jobs and policy building that pushes for its promotion. Challenges like the lack of human resources and skill set are some—introducing more courses focused on environmental sustenance and teaching younger students the ABCs of having a green economy. But, sometimes sustainability is expensive and this can pose a crippling challenge. Adopting expensive sustainable plans or employing high-rate professionals can be counterproductive in a country as poor and in debt as Nigeria.

Overlooking all of these challenges, Nigeria is slowly but steadily embracing the transition to green jobs. The question is, can we go faster?