Follow Us on Google
•States, LGAs to benefit from carbon credit revenues
By Chinyere Anyanwu
Greenplinth Africa, in collaboration with its development partners, has declared that its flagship initiative, the 80 Million Clean Cookstoves Project, when fully deployed, will earn the country $5 billion from verified carbon credit revenues annually.
This was revealed by Greenplinth Africa’s Vice President, Dr. Victor Fodeke, during a stakeholders engagement held in Lagos on Thursday, January 29.
Dr. Fodeke described carbon as the new global currency, stating that it is both an asset and a commodity with a current value of about $104 per metric tonne.
He said, “for every tonne of carbon you are able to refuse from getting into the space that is causing greenhouse gases, you get $104. This is why we are confident that this initiative of Greenpeace can meaningfully contribute to transforming Nigeria’s economic fortunes.
“For this single project, we bring every year $5 billion to the coffers of the Federal Government of Nigeria.”
Furthermore, Fodeke noted that the organisation is currently driving “two of the most ambitious sustainability initiatives ever undertaken in Africa – the 80 Million Clean Cookstoves Project and the 4 Billion Innovative Economic Trees Programme in Nigeria.”
Both projects, according to him, are aimed at changing how Nigerian households cook as well as halting the challenge of deforestation currently facing the country.
He added: “We are here to advance what is, without question, the largest single clean cookstoves project in the world – the 80 Million Clean Cookstoves Project in Nigeria. This initiative is far more than a clean-cooking intervention. It is a strategic economic, environmental, and social transformation programme – one that positions Nigeria at the forefront of global climate action, sustainable development, and regulated carbon markets.
“At the heart of this initiative is a bold commitment to transform how over 80 million Nigerians, primarily women and children, cook everyday.
“For decades, Nigeria’s reliance on traditional firewood has resulted in the loss of over 95 per cent of our forest stock, accelerating deforestation and desertification; health crises, and entrenched poverty. Today, many households spend 30 – 40 per cent of their weekly income on firewood, simply to prepare meals. This project is designed to permanently change these realities.”
Highlighting the numerous benefits of the project to all stakeholders, the Greenplinth Africa’s vice president said, “the programme has been deliberately structured to deliver multi-sectoral benefits to” investors; firewood sellers who would be transitioned into briquette distribution enterprises; financial institutions that would register beneficiaries to enable seamless monthly disbursements; and the health sector which will benefit through strengthened NHIS funding and improved hospital capacity.
Other stakeholders who will benefit from the project include insurance providers who will deliver comprehensive stove-insurance coverage to the users; technology, fintech, and telecom companies that will support large-scale data integration, provide APIs, cloud infrastructure, and connectivity; and the end-users who will benefit from reduced household energy costs, improved health outcomes, access to a digital fuel card – the first of its kind globally – to confirm briquette receipt.
He further explained that, “each participating household will receive at no cost – a comprehensive clean-cooking solution package, including a highly efficient, thermally optimised clean cookstove, supplied with two 15-litre cooking pots; digital metering and GPS tracking, capturing cooking activities; real-time CO₂ emissions avoided and 24/7 online monitoring; a stove that requires substantial heating only once – retaining heat for four to five hours thereafter; one briquette capable of sustaining cooking for up to five hours; a monthly N10,000 household support (Paid-to-Cook initiative), providing direct financial relief; free monthly delivery of 40kg of biomass briquettes, supplied directly to the household; and comprehensive health insurance, covering up to eight household members, addressing severe health impacts of pre-project indoor air pollution and eliminating subsequent out-of-pocket medical expenses for beneficiaries. This is not charity. It is climate justice delivered with dignity.”
The distribution of the 80 million Clean Cookstoves Project, which kicked off in Makoko, Lagos, last June will commence fully across Lagos, Niger, Enugu, Nasarawa, Benue, Kebbi, Borno and Delta states this year.
Explaining the qualities of the clean cookstoves, the Greenplinth Africa Chief Finance Officer, Babatunde Aina, said they are built with stainless steel and that each one comes with two 50litr pots and can cook rice in 12 minutes.
According to him, “each stove saves about 15.4 metric tonnes of CO₂ in a year. By the time we’re fully operational, the stove would save the world 1.2 billion tonnes of CO₂ in a year. The whole idea is that we want to reduce deforestation. Firewood is a N300 billion business. We’re not out to stop firewood business, but we’re out to stop the deforestation of Nigeria.”
Also speaking on the project, former deputy governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Tunde Lemo, said “it is a nationally endorsed, structured and scalable intervention. The project is registered on the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Global Climate Action Portal aligning Nigeria with international best practices in climate action transparency and accountability.
“Our intention is to show that sustainability is achievable, affordable and scalable even at the grassroots when a nation commits its will, policies and partnerships.”
He, therefore, called on governments at all levels, development partners, financiers, civic society, the media and all Nigerians to partner with Greenplinth Africa in the energy transition and decarbonisation journey.
Lemo informed that the project “is not just about cleaner kitchens, it is about healthier families, empowered women, resilient communities, green jobs, and a sustainable future for our nation.”
Greenplinth Africa also revealed that the Green Conference themed, “Decarbonising Africa: From Policy Commitment to Scalable Implementation”, and the 2026 Projects Implementation Retreat are scheduled for March 3 – 5, 2026 in Lagos.
