The Norwegian Ambassador to Nigeria, Svein Baera, has called for increased investment in solar energy and stronger international cooperation to tackle climate change, pollution and environmental degradation, urging businesses and governments to move away from fossil fuel-powered generators. Speaking on Friday in Abuja at a World Environment Day event themed, “Because There’s No Planet B,” held in partnership with renowned Nigerian artist, Nike Davies-Okundaye, popularly known as Mama Nike, Baera said environmental challenges such as ocean pollution and greenhouse gas emissions require collective action from governments, businesses and citizens worldwide. He stressed that pollution and climate change remain major threats to the planet and require urgent global action. The envoy said, “It’s World Environment Day today, and it’s important that we then use all kinds of ways to communicate the message that the world’s environment is not as it should be. “There is a lot of plastic in the ocean.
There are a lot of emissions causing climate change. So all good forces in all countries must work together to find better solutions of reducing pollution and reducing emissions to save the climate and the environment.” Baera highlighted solar power as a practical alternative to fossil fuel-based energy sources, particularly diesel generators widely used across Nigeria. “For instance, to go from a diesel generator and try to invest in solar energy, that is clean energy,” he said. He added that political leaders have a crucial role to play in advancing environmental protection through policy coordination and international collaboration. “And politicians in all countries also need to work together. So we need more international cooperation to save our oceans, to save our climate, to have less pollution and a better world, a greener world for all of us,” Baera said.
The ambassador disclosed that Norwegian companies are already supporting Nigeria’s clean energy transition by supplying solar technology to businesses. “For instance, Norwegian companies are providing solar energy and solar technology to businesses in Nigeria, so that they can throw out the diesel generators and to have clean energy from the sun, which is plentiful in Nigeria,” he said. Baera also highlighted Norway’s Energy for Development programme, which is helping Nigeria build capacity to reduce emissions, including within the oil and gas sector. “We also have a programme called Energy for Development, where we are transferring competence from Norway to Nigeria, for instance, in the area of having fewer emissions from the oil and gas sector,” he said.
While expressing optimism about the programme’s impact, the ambassador challenged both Norwegian and Nigerian businesses to intensify efforts to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy sources. “But I think we need to point at the private sector, both the Norwegian private sector and the Nigerian private sector, to step up the transfer from fossil energy to clean energy from the sun,” he said. The envoy also linked environmental degradation to individual attitudes and behaviours, urging citizens to adopt cleaner habits. “Well, everyone, both in Nigeria and in all other countries, should be aware of how they pollute their surroundings. You should not throw waste on the street. You should not put waste into the ocean.
You should try to find solutions that lead to fewer emissions,” he said. Baera noted that the partnership with Mama Nike was aimed at using art and culture to promote environmental awareness and encourage greater public commitment to protecting the planet. Chief Okundaye-Davies, on her part, urged Nigerians to embrace recycling and creative enterprise as tools for environmental sustainability and economic empowerment, saying waste materials can be transformed into valuable products and sources of livelihood. She praised the Norwegian Embassy for supporting initiatives that promote environmental awareness and community development. “Turning trash to treasure, turning waste to wealth, we have the knowledge, but we don’t have the money.
Now, these people have the money for us to turn it into what we want it to be,” she said. Okundaye-Davies said recycling activities are creating jobs and income opportunities across the value chain, from waste collectors to artists and transporters. *So, we may not generate the money for the whole public, but the people from the grassroots. This work, the people who pick the trash, they generate food. The people who clean it, the people who turn it to art,” she stated.
The founder of Nike Art Gallery explained that materials commonly discarded as waste, including textiles, tea bags, orange peels and plastic bottles, are being converted into artworks, fashion items and household products. “There is nothing wasted in Nigeria. Those pure water you throw away, we clean it, and we are turning it into a dress. We are going to put it in the museum for people to see what we are throwing in the space.” She also challenged Nigerian media and young people to take ownership of promoting local creativity and innovation, noting that indigenous fabrics and recycled art have gained international recognition. “Nigeria belongs to the youth, and the only way you can do it is to package your own. With the help of the media, then people will see what we can do with the waste.” Okundaye-Davies expressed confidence that greater awareness would encourage more Nigerians to adopt environmentally friendly practices and support the growing circular economy.