30/08/2026
From learning to commitment.
Day 3 of the Fair Finance Nigeria Coalition capacity building workshop closes today, and for me as Executive Director of Bluegreen Initiative for Sustainable Development Network, the message is clear: Finance must serve people and planet.
3 key takeaways we’re taking home to Bluegreen:
1. Accountability is possible
We now have tools to track how banks perform on ESG, human rights, and climate. The 1.7/10 average from the 2025 assessment isn’t to shame banks. It’s to push a "race to the top."
2. Civil society has power
Through advocacy, stakeholder engagement, and data, we can influence what gets funded. For us at Bluegreen, that means pushing for:
- Green loans for smallholder fish farmers
- Financing for biowaste-to-feed and circular agriculture
- Investment in climate-resilient blue economy projects
3. 2028 is coming fast
With FRC making ISSB-aligned sustainability reporting mandatory for Public Interest Entities from 2028, organizations that start measuring now will lead. Those that wait will scramble.
Our commitment at Bluegreen:
We will keep engaging financial institutions, document our own sustainability performance, and ensure that capital flowing into agriculture and the blue economy actually drives sustainable development in Nigeria.
Because finance is not neutral. And neither are we.
Thank you to Fair Finance Nigeria Coalition for this timely training. The work continues.