Isiyaku Ahmed
The Kano State Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, in partnership with the Partnership for Agile Governance and Climate Engagement (PACE), a UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO)-funded program, on Monday convened key stakeholders for a two-day workshop to shape the proposed Kano State Climate Change Bill.
The workshop brought together representatives from government ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs), the private sector, civil society, and development partners to deliberate on strategies for effective climate governance in the state.
Key objectives of the engagement included identifying sector-specific commitments and actions in line with the state’s climate policy and plan, examining climate enablers for different sectors, and proposing draft provisions on duties, obligations, responsibilities, and standards for inclusion in the Bill.
The Kano State Climate Change Policy, which provides the framework for the proposed legislation, was officially launched on 29 July 2025.
Discussions at the workshop focused on aligning the Bill with the state policy, as well as national and international climate frameworks, while addressing Kano’s specific environmental challenges and strengthening institutional arrangements to promote climate resilience, environmental management, and sustainable development.
The State Team Lead of PACE-FCDO, Mallam Auwal Hamza, underscored the importance of enacting a climate change law rather than relying solely on policies or regulations.
He noted that laws enforce compliance, impose penalties, and ensure continuity beyond political changes.
“Funding and institutional structures are more likely to be sustained where there is a law rather than regulations.
“Environmental regulations are often sector-specific, but a climate change law integrates all climate actions under a single legal framework, preventing fragmentation,” Hamza said.
He outlined the legislative process, explaining that stakeholder engagement is the first step to gather perspectives, data, and review existing state policies and laws.
“A draft bill is then developed and reviewed by the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, followed by a second draft presented at a plenary session for validation by a broad range of stakeholders.
“After adoption, the Bill is submitted to the State Executive Council for ratification, forwarded to the Ministry of Justice for drafting as an Executive Bill, and subsequently presented to the State House of Assembly for legislative considerations and passed into law.”
According to Hamza, the law will clarify which agencies citizens should engage with on climate-related issues, define government budgetary provisions for climate action, and establish rules to prevent violations.
Umar Saleh Anka is the Director of Climate Change at the Kano State Ministry of Environment and Climate Change.
He said the proposed Bill would provide a clear statutory framework defining roles, responsibilities, and accountability for climate action across all relevant MDAs.
Anka explained that the legislation would establish sector-specific obligations, requiring MDAs to integrate climate change considerations into their core mandates, including mitigation, adaptation, and resilience measures in sectors such as agriculture, energy, transport, urban development, health, waste management, and education.
“Climate change will be treated as a cross-cutting development issue rather than the responsibility of a single institution,” Anka said.
He added that the Bill would mandate the mainstreaming of climate change into planning and budgeting processes, requiring MDAs to incorporate climate risk assessments, emissions considerations, and resilience measures into policies, programs, annual work plans, and budget proposals.
Public investments, he noted, would be expected to align with the state’s climate priorities and long-term development objectives.
Anka further highlighted provisions for monitoring, reporting and compliance, noting that MDAs would be required to generate and submit climate-related data, report on implementation progress, and comply with standards issued by the designated climate authority.
“These measures, he said, would enhance transparency, improve data quality, and strengthen accountability across government.
“The central objective of the Kano State Climate Change Law is to protect climate action from policy discontinuity caused by political changes,” he said, adding that the Bill would establish permanent institutional arrangements, including a dedicated climate authority, to ensure continuity, technical oversight, and institutional memory beyond electoral cycles.
He explained that by embedding long-term planning and statutory obligations, the Bill would make climate responsibilities, reporting requirements, and financing mechanisms legally binding, ensuring that successive administrations sustain and build upon existing climate actions.
On his part, the Technical Lead for the development of the Kano State Climate Change Bill, Mr. Huzi Mshelia Ishaku, said the proposed legislation places strong emphasis on transparency, monitoring, enforcement, and inclusive governance.
According to him, the proposed Bill would provide for clear mechanisms for monitoring and reporting climate-related activities and mandates designated authorities to undertake public awareness, engagement, and dissemination of climate information.
He added that the Bill would require the submission of an annual report to the state Executive, which the Kano State House of Assembly could rely on for oversight, including its investigative powers over public expenditure.
Mr. Huzi also noted that the proposed Bill would guarantee access to information by placing obligations on relevant authorities to make such information available upon request.
He said the composition of the governing body under the Bill would include representatives from different segments of society to ensure inclusiveness and broad participation in decision-making.
He stressed the need to avoid unintended consequences in creating new institutions that could generate additional challenges rather than address existing gaps.
While noting that some states have largely domesticated the National Climate Change Act of 2021, Mr. Huzi said the Kano State Climate Change Bill would be deliberately tailored to reflect the state’s local circumstances and peculiarities, guided by its climate change policy.
However, a representative of the private sector, Mr. Najeeb Yunusa Hassan, General Manager, Agricultural Services, Dantata Foods & Allied Products Company Ltd, raised concerns about the timing of the Bill.
He argued that since the launch of the State Climate Change Policy, insufficient information has been disseminated to farmers and the general public.
According to him, many stakeholders struggle to distinguish between climate change, mitigation and adaptation.
He noted that most private sector actors, particularly in agriculture, require practical alternatives before being asked to change existing practices.
“For instance, if farmers are asked to reduce the use of synthetic agrochemicals and fertilizers, what alternatives are being provided?” he asked.
“Currently, the state does not offer reliable or affordable substitutes for these products.”
Stakeholders at the event worked with a shared commitment to refine the proposed Bill in a manner that balances strong legal obligations with practical implementation realities, ensuring effective and inclusive climate governance for Kano State.
