The African Export-Import Bank has cautioned that divesting from fossil fuels could lower Nigeria’s overall GDP by much to $30 billion.
According to the report, lowering fossil fuels could reduce emissions from the continent; nevertheless, most African countries rely on fossil fuels to meet their immediate energy demands, as well as a major source of exports, foreign exchange, job creation, and power generation and supply.
The report states, “For major oil exporting countries, including Algeria, Angola, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Nigeria, and the Republic of Congo, fossil fuel also represents the main source of export earnings and fiscal revenues, job creation, fossil fuel-based power generation and supply, and power to fossil fuel-intensive industries.
“Divesting from fossil fuel could reduce GDP by as much as US$30 billion in Nigeria, US$22 billion in Algeria, US$19.3 billion in Angola and an aggregate of US$190 billion for the continent.”
Furthermore, the report criticized Africa’s energy poverty, claiming that although accounting for approximately 17% of the world’s population, it only expends 6% of its energy, with approximately 600 million people without access to electricity and approximately 900 million without access to clean cooking fuels.
Recently, there have been calls for African countries to forgo fossil fuel energy sources in favor of climate-friendly clean energy as a means of combating climate change. In 2015, 54 African countries, including Nigeria, signed the Paris Climate Agreement, and all have gone on to ratify it.
