Premium Times has reported that the federal government spent about N3 billion to sponsor delegates to attend the United Nations’ annual climate summit, COP28, which started in Dubai last Thursday and will continue until at least 12 December.
Nigeria has 1,411 delegates, ranking third among countries with the most delegates at the meeting. Only the host country, UAE (4,409) and Brazil (3,081) have more participants than Africa’s most populous country.
Other delegations surpassing 1,000 participants include China, which registered 1,411 people, just like Nigeria, followed by Indonesia with 1,229, Japan with 1,067 and Turkey with 1,045.
Parties to this Convention from Nigeria include government officials, representatives from the private sector, civil society, the voluntary sector, state governments, media, multilateral institutions, representatives of marginalised communities, and many others.
Nigerians, many of whom are struggling to make ends meet, have been outraged by the size of the government’s large delegations at a time when the country’s inflation rate is 27.33 per cent and the government is planning to borrow more than $9 billion to fund its N27.5 trillion 2024 budget.
As the outrage grew, the Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, released a statement on Monday saying the federal government-sponsored delegation “is made up of a total of 422 persons,” not 1,411 as widely speculated.
He broke down the figure as 167 participants from all Ministries and 73 persons from Federal Parastatals/Agencies. The Presidency has 67 officials – the National Assembly – 40; the Federal Ministry of Environment – 34; the National Council on Climate Change – 32; and nine participants from the Office of the Vice President.
Of the 1,411 delegates, 422 were sponsored by the federal government to attend the conference, according to the minister of information. On average, the estimated cost of a to-and-fro flight ticket from Nigeria to Dubai is N2 million.
At this rate, a two-way flight ticket for 412 people will amount to N824 million. President Tinubu and at least ten officials travelled with the presidential jet, while the other 412 delegates are estimated to have taken commercial flights.
The figure could be higher given that several officers travelled on business-class tickets, which are more expensive than economy-class tickets used for our computation.
According to data released by organisers, the list of the Nigerian delegation includes the president and two of his children, 26 ministers, the chief of staff, 14 director generals, several directors, deputy directors, assistant directors, and several officials with different titles. Gilbert Chagouri is part of the delegation listed as ‘Confidante of the President.’
Aside from the cost of a flight ticket, the federal government gives estacode to each traveller depending on their level. Ministers are paid $900 per day as estacode, which amounts to $11,700 per minister for the 13-day period the conference would last.
At the official market, one dollar is currently exchanged for N816. This means a minister will get N9.5 million as an estacode during the conference.
About 26 ministers are attending the conference, according to official data from the United Nations Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
This means the government will spend at least N248 million on minister allowances.
The Federal Government has since defended the large delegation, dismissing the protests by opposition parties and citizens.
“As the biggest economy and most populous country in Africa, with a substantial extractive economy and extensive vulnerability to climate change, Nigeria has a significant stake in climate action, and our active and robust participation at COP is therefore not unwarranted,” Mr Idris, the minister of information, said.
