Drive The Future Campaign
Drive the Future: Why the State House Must Electrify Its Official Fleet Now
As the global climate clock ticks louder with every passing year, the call for bold action is no longer the cry of a few environmentalists, it is a demand echoing from the streets, schools, boardrooms, and most critically, from the youth. At the heart of Nigeria’s climate conundrum lies a sector that continues to emit millions of tons of carbon: transportation. But what if Nigeria's next budget could ignite a revolution? What if every new vehicle procured by the government became an electric symbol of hope, sustainability, and forward-thinking governance?
This is the rallying call of the Drive the Future Campaign, a transformative initiative by the Youth Climate Collective (YCC) that calls on the State House of the Nigerian government to commit to a singular, yet powerful demand: all newly issued government vehicles must be electric, starting with the State House.
The Climate Imperative: Why EVs Matter
Nigeria’s transport sector is responsible for 43 million tons of CO₂ equivalent emissions, with a staggering 72% of that stemming from passenger vehicles. The country’s Energy Transition Plan (ETP), launched in 2022, aims to reach net-zero emissions by 2060, yet the pace of implementation remains sluggish. Following the 2023 removal of fuel subsidies, the rising cost of transport has created an urgent need for affordable and sustainable alternatives. Electric vehicles (EVs), not just a climate solution, but as an economic, health, and developmental imperative.
Budget as a Tool for Transition
The 2025 federal budget earmarks ₦4.9 billion for State-House vehicle procurement. This allocation offers a strategic opportunity: it can either deepen Nigeria's fossil fuel dependency or drive the country toward a clean energy future.
If spent on electric vehicles, these funds become a powerful lever for change. Every EV purchased reduces emissions, signals government commitment, and helps scale the infrastructure necessary for widespread adoption. But if the money goes toward conventional combustion engine vehicles, it locks Nigeria into further climate vulnerability, higher maintenance costs, and lost investment opportunities in a rapidly growing EV market.
Policy Meets Purpose: From Rhetoric to Reality
Since 2021, Nigeria has spent over ₦6 billion on official cars, none of which, so far, serve the nation's climate ambitions. The Drive the Future campaign seeks to redirect that trajectory. This demand isn’t arbitrary; it aligns seamlessly with existing government blueprints, including the Energy Transition Plan and the National Automotive Industry Development Plan (2023). By electrifying official fleets, Nigeria can eliminate emissions from government transport, set an example for citizens and private enterprises, and attract both local and international investments in the EV space. It’s not just policy alignment, it’s proof of political will.
Scaling EVs Through Strategic Leadership
If every newly procured government vehicle across Nigeria’s 36 states and federal bodies were electric, the resulting demand would accelerate EV market growth, necessitate the development of charging infrastructure, and normalise electric mobility. The ripple effect? Citizens, inspired by leadership, follow suit. With the right policies and subsidies mirroring successful models in Norway, China, and the United States, Nigeria could leapfrog into a green mobility era.
Targeting Influence and Impact
The campaign specifically targets government ministries, legislative bodies, and agencies tasked with transport and energy reform. But its influence goes far beyond procurement; it shapes perception, policy, and practice. The government’s choices affect public behaviour, attract foreign investment, and signal Nigeria’s seriousness on climate action to global stakeholders.
Campaign Tools: From Street to Strategy
The Drive the Future Campaign is not a whisper, it’s a wave, strategically designed to mobilize, educate, and influence:
Public Mobilization: Coalition-building and calls-to-action will surround key moments like budget approvals and national climate events.
Strategic Media & Digital Campaigns: Using compelling narratives and online platforms, the campaign will push the EV message into the mainstream.
Data-Driven Advocacy: Surveys and polls will gather public opinion, reinforce campaign demands, and guide government action through citizen-backed evidence.
Coalition Advocacy: Partner organisations will amplify voices, creating a unified front calling for sustainability in public spending.
The Bigger Picture: Health, Jobs, and Justice
This is not merely about reducing emissions. It’s about air quality, public health, youth employment, and climate justice.
With 60% of urban air pollution in Nigeria linked to transport emissions, EVs offer an escape from the toxic air that plagues cities like Lagos, Port Harcourt, and Abuja. Electric fleets mean fewer hospital visits, fewer lost workdays, and better outcomes for children and the elderly.
Meanwhile, building an EV industry from charging stations to manufacturing means new jobs and opportunities for young Nigerians, who currently face staggering unemployment levels.
Youth at the Forefront
The Youth Climate Collective knows this: the people who will inherit Nigeria’s climate future are the ones demanding change today. By putting pressure on decision-makers and aligning activism with fiscal policy, they are transforming protest into policy and outrage into outcomes.
Their message is simple and urgent: Nigeria must lead the charge, literally and figuratively, by electrifying its official fleet.
A National Litmus Test
The ₦4.76 billion allocated for vehicle procurement for the State House in the 2025 budget isn’t just a line item; it’s a litmus test. Will Nigeria invest in electric mobility and future-forward governance, or remain tethered to a past of pollution, oil dependency, and broken promises?
Young Nigerians are watching. So is the world. Let this be the year Nigeria stops talking and starts driving into a cleaner, greener, and more just future.