By Justina Auta

UN Women and the National Council on Climate Change (NCCC) have launched Nigeria’s NDC Gender Integration Toolkit and Strategy to enhance gender equality in national climate governance and policymaking.

Speaking in Abuja, Ms. Beatrice Eyong, UN Women Country Representative to Nigeria and ECOWAS, described the launch as a major step toward inclusive climate governance.

She said the initiative marked a milestone in aligning Nigeria’s climate commitments with gender-responsive and equitable development priorities.

“Today is not just the unveiling of a technical resource; it is a reaffirmation of our commitment to inclusive, equitable, and effective climate action for all Nigerians,” Eyong said.

She stressed that gender equality must be seen not as an add-on, but as a vital driver of climate resilience, innovation, and sustainable national development across all sectors of society.

“We cannot achieve our climate targets without putting women at the centre of climate action, decision-making, and policy implementation,” Eyong emphasised.

Eyong said sectoral training sessions would be held to strengthen the capacity of federal and state actors, enabling them to effectively apply the toolkit in their various areas of climate responsibility.

She also announced the development of a Trainer-of-Trainers (ToT) model, alongside a monitoring and evaluation framework, to support toolkit implementation in both digital and print formats nationwide.

“With strong political will and collaboration, Nigeria can lead Africa in proving that climate action and gender equality are two sides of the same coin,” Eyong said.

Director-General of the NCCC, Dr Salisu Dahiru, said integrating gender into climate policy was central to building national resilience, noting that climate change impacted women and children disproportionately.

“The launch of this toolkit signals a critical shift from commitment to institutionalisation. We must move beyond promises to real, measurable, gender-responsive climate actions across every sector,” he stated.

Mrs Grace Obi-Ukpabi, Director of Social Development at the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, said the initiative would strengthen national planning and promote gender-responsive budgeting in climate programmes.

“Sectoral training workshops are scheduled from Oct. 7 to Oct. 17, aimed at equipping government actors at all levels with the knowledge to implement gender-focused climate initiatives effectively.

“The toolkit introduces eight sector-specific guides and a cross-sectoral Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) and Climate Finance Toolkit to support results-based tracking and funding strategies.

“It will provide Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) with practical tools to turn gender and climate commitments into measurable action across energy, agriculture, water, transport, health, and more.” (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Yinusa Ishola/Abiemwense Moru