Page 518 - Sustainable Cities and Communities Design Handbook

Sustainable Development Cases in Africa Chapter j 23 487

of each sector to be reformed under the Vision 20:2020. Although it seems that
environmental issues take a backseat to both people and profit in the rhetoric
of the Vision, the NIP outlines many projects to combat environmental
degradation. The government has planned three specific large-scale renewable
energy projects while also planning for solar rural electrification projects and
small and medium hydro implementation. The first of these was the 10-MW
Katsina Wind Project, which would be the first wind installation in the
country (NG NIP, 2010). Completion was anticipated to be in 2011; however,
the project has been delayed significantly and it still pending completion. The
second large-scale renewable energy project stated within the NIP is the 2600-
MW Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Plant. Construction of the dam and power
station along with the necessary transmission infrastructure will boost the
availability of electricity to the area as well as irrigation. This project too has
faced significant setbacks since bids were made in 2011, primarily due to
heated negotiations between the Nigerian government and several Chinese
developers. As of summer 2016 the government has indicated that an agree-
ment has been reached and the project is set to start (ESI, 2016). The third
project is the Zungeru Hydropower Project. The feasibility study returned an
optimal capacity of 525 MW with expansion up to 700 MW. This project was
handled jointly by the Chinese developers SINOHYDRO and China National
Electric Engineering Corporation and is scheduled to begin generating elec-
tricity in 2019 in spite of multiple setbacks, including allegations of fraud and
compensation for the local community. The government is also facilitating
solar rural electrification projects in Cross River State, Ogun State, Bauchi
State, and Katsina State as well as small and medium-scale hydro projects
depending upon the results of feasibility studies (NG NIP, 2010).
In addition to renewable energy, the Nigerian government outlines several
strategies to deal with the environmental dimension of sustainable devel-
opment. With regard to land degradation and biodiversity loss, the efforts are
classified as threefold: institutional policy, legal regulatory, and special
initiatives. Institutionally, the Nigerian government has established the
Federal Ministry of Environment, the National Oil Spillage Detection and
Response Agency, and the National Environmental Standards and Regula-
tions Enforcement Agency. Additionally, the country has developed national
policies with regard to environmental sanitation, drought and desertification,
flood and erosion control, and environmental impact assessment. Nigeria
is also signatory to several treaties for the prevention of environmental
degradation and biodiversity loss, including the Convention on Biological
Diversity, RAMSAR Convention on Conservation of Wetlands, the United
Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change, and the Kyoto
Protocol.
A few years later the Nigerian government released “Nigeria’s Path to
Sustainable Development Through Green Economy,” which builds on the
goals, projects, and programs outlined in Vision 20:2020 through the concept