Türkiye urges shift from climate pledges to action ahead of COP31

Turkish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mehmet Poroy, Indonesian Ambassador to Nigeria, Bambang Suharto, Jummai Vandu from the Department of Energy Transportation and Infrastructure, Nigeria's National Council on Climate Change, South Korean Ambassador to Nigeria, Jeong Yo-an, The Australian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Ms Leilani Bin-Juda, Ethiopian Ambassador to Nigeria, Legesse Geremew Haile on Tuesday in Abuja at the MIKTA COP Side Event on Climate Finance and Implementation Partnership in Africa, Mexico Charge d'Affaires to Nigeria, Jose Manuel Briseno Flores. Photo: Deborah Musa

The Turkish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mehmet Poroy, has called for a decisive shift from climate change commitments to practical implementation, insisting that improved access to climate finance is essential to helping developing countries translate their environmental ambitions into tangible results.

Poroy made the call on Tuesday in Abuja at a climate finance and implementation partnership meeting organised by the MIKTA countries—Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Türkiye and Australia—ahead of COP31, scheduled for November 9 to 20, 2026.

The Turkish Ambassador said the forthcoming 31st United Nations Climate Change Conference in Antalya, Türkiye, must prioritise delivering on existing commitments rather than prolonging negotiations, with Africa at the centre of efforts to mobilise funding, technology and investment for climate action.

“As the incoming COP-31 presidency, we are working closely with our Australian partners to ensure that COP-31 in Antalya contributes not only to furthering negotiations, but also to accelerating the implementation of commitments already made.

“Our vision is therefore clear. COP-31 should be an implementation COP meeting,” he said.

He said developing countries, particularly those in Africa, needed more than ambitious climate targets to address the effects of global warming, stressing that access to finance, technology and project preparation support remained critical to translating national commitments into action.

Poroy said climate finance should be closely linked to development priorities, including energy security, sustainable agriculture, food security, green industrialisation and climate-resilient cities.

He added that Türkiye was developing a Climate Implementation Bridge initiative with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation to help countries convert their national climate commitments into investment-ready projects and connect them with appropriate financing.

“The Climate Implementation Bridge is not intended to create a new fund or replace existing climate finance mechanisms,” he said.

Explaining that the initiative was designed to close the gap between climate pledges and projects capable of attracting investment.

The ambassador said the central question was not merely how much climate finance was available, but whether the money could reach the projects and communities that needed it.

His position received support from Nigeria’s National Council on Climate Change, whose Director-General, Omotenioye Majekodunmi, represented by Jummai Vandu, said the country was determined to move beyond climate pledges to measurable outcomes.

“For too long, the international climate discourse has been weighed down by the heavy currency of promises. Today, Nigeria’s message is definitive: we are moving decisively from pledges to performance,” she said.

Majekodunmi said Nigeria wanted its national climate plans and nationally determined contributions translated into bankable, investment-ready projects, adding that adaptation finance must be scaled up to reflect the severity of climate-related challenges confronting vulnerable communities.

She also advocated greater involvement of state governments, cities and local councils in climate action, noting that resilience must be built where the effects of climate change are most directly felt.

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The NCCC chief stressed that climate investments must empower women and young people as decision-makers and beneficiaries while ensuring that the transition to clean energy promotes energy security, job creation and economic equity.

Meanwhile, the South Korean Ambassador to Nigeria, Jeong Yo-an, disclosed that Nigeria would require an estimated $`337bn between 2026 and 2035 to meet its climate commitments.

He said international climate finance and development cooperation remained essential but urged Nigeria to complement external support with domestic resources, private investment and a stable business environment.

Yo-an identified agriculture, renewable energy, power infrastructure and green technology as promising areas for cooperation between both countries.

He also highlighted a planned Korea International Cooperation Agency and Food and Agriculture Organisation project for 2026 to 2030, aimed at creating green jobs for young people in agriculture and food production through climate-smart farming and digital technology.

Similarly, the Indonesian Ambassador to Nigeria, Bambang Suharto, proposed exploring an Indonesia-Nigeria Climate Finance and Resilience Partnership to support climate-resilient agriculture, land restoration, coastal protection, clean energy and green industrialisation.

Suharto said Indonesia estimated that it needed $472.6bn to achieve its climate targets, illustrating the scale of the financing challenge facing developing economies.

He called for developed countries to honour existing climate finance commitments, including the goal of mobilising at least 1.3tn annually.

The Australian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Ms Leilani Bin-Juda, also urged countries to support reforms that would make climate finance easier to access, citing complex application procedures, fragmented funding systems, delays and high borrowing costs as major obstacles.

The envoy called for broader support for an initiative launched in Fiji on October 8 to improve access to climate finance for small island developing states and least developed countries, including through simpler approval processes and stronger national capacity to prepare investment-ready projects.

The Ethiopian Ambassador to Nigeria, Legesse Geremew Haile, said Africa continued to face disproportionate climate vulnerabilities despite contributing marginally to global emissions.
He called for predictable, grant-based financing and technology transfers, arguing that the continent needed to move beyond repeated pledges towards concrete implementation.

Haile cited Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Initiative as an example of how environmental restoration could support employment, land recovery and carbon capture.

Ethiopia is expected to host COP32 in 2027. Haile expressed hope that the transition from Antalya to Addis Ababa would deliver meaningful financial breakthroughs, support just energy transitions and strengthen long-term resilience across Africa.