Nigeria updates climate pledge, commits to 32% emission cut by 2035

Nigeria has submitted its updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), strengthening its climate targets with new milestones.

The revised plan commits the country to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 29 percent by 2030 and 32 percent by 2035, compared to 2018 levels, with a long-term goal of net-zero emissions by 2060.

This marks a shift from Nigeria’s previous pledge (NDC 2.0), filed in 2021 ahead of COP26 in Glasgow, which promised an unconditional 20 percent and conditional 47 percent reduction by 2030 relative to business-as-usual projections.

The new submission includes clearer mid-century decarbonisation pathways, placing Nigeria among a handful of countries — including Eswatini, Jordan, Tunisia, and Honduras — to file updated pledges by the September 22 UN deadline ahead of COP30 in Brazil this November.

Simon Stiell, UNFCCC executive secretary, described Nigeria’s updated NDC as a “significant step forward” in aligning development with climate action.

“The clean energy economy presents Nigeria with an opportunity to usher in a new era of economic growth,” he said, adding that the plan could generate jobs, attract investment, and leverage the potential of the country’s youthful population.

Nigeria’s National Council on Climate Change (NCCC) validated the submission in August at a national workshop, confirming the pledge would be lodged before COP30.

The council said the new targets underscore Nigeria’s determination to balance growth with sustainability while strengthening resilience to climate impacts.

The updated plan also reflects increasing global pressure on major developing economies to raise their climate ambition.

With millions already vulnerable to extreme weather, Nigeria’s ability to translate its new commitments into real emission cuts and clean energy projects will be closely watched at COP30.