Nigeria: Nigeria Needs More Capital for Clean Cooking Transition - Minister

What the report says

Nigeria’s Environment Minister, Balarabe Abbas Lawal, is urging greater investment in the country’s clean cooking sector to speed up the shift from traditional cooking fuels to cleaner alternatives. The remarks were reported by Leadership and were delivered at the Nigeria Clean Cooking Forum 2026 in Abuja, where the minister was represented by Deputy Director of Climate Change Enebong Abiola.

Lawal said the transition will require broader and more diversified financing, especially to make affordable cooking technologies available to low-income households. He said the government plans to work with other ministries, state governments, development partners and private-sector operators. He also pressed international institutions and lenders to support projects with technical expertise, concessional finance, guarantees and other risk-sharing tools. In his framing, clean cooking should be treated as an investment area, not only as a social welfare issue.

The article said the minister linked clean cooking to health, the environment and Nigeria’s energy transition goals. According to the report, the country’s Energy Transition Plan includes clean cooking among five key elements on the path to net-zero emissions by 2060, with a shift toward liquefied petroleum gas, improved biomass systems, biogas and electric cooking. The minister also said the transition should reflect the needs of women and poorer households.

Other speakers at the forum warned that higher energy costs are pushing some families back to firewood and charcoal, while development and technical partners described training and public-private cooperation as part of the response. The discussion highlights the financing gap facing Nigeria’s clean cooking push and the challenge of keeping cleaner fuels affordable for vulnerable households.