As global efforts to combat climate change gain momentum , Nigeria , Africa ? s top oil producer and biggest importer of fossil fuel- powered generators , has an important role in keeping global warming below 1 . 50 c , ? FEMI ASU writes

In 2015 , 195 countries stated their commitment at the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 ?C , above pre - industrial levels .

The commitment also involved efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1 . 5 ?C , recognising that this would significantly reduce the risks and impact of climate change .

According to a recent study , more than a quarter of the planet ? s surface could become significantly drier if global temperatures rise to 2 ? C above pre - industrial levels .

The study suggests that many regions may face an increased threat of drought and wildfires , adding that limiting global warming to under 1 . 5 ? C will avoid extreme changes for two - thirds of these areas .

? Aridification is a serious threat because it can critically impact on areas such as agriculture, water quality, and biodiversity, ? a co - author from the Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen China, Chang - Eui Park , says .

African countries, including Nigeria , are said to account for 3 . 8 per cent of the global greenhouse gas emissions , which cause global warming , compared to 23 per cent of China , 19 per cent of the United States and 13 per cent for the European Union.

But no continent will be struck as severely by the impact of climate change as Africa , according to the United Nations Environment Programme.

The UNEP says , ?By 2020 , between 75 and 250 million people on the continent are projected to be exposed to increased water stress due to climate change . In the same year , in some countries , yields from rain- fed agriculture could be reduced by up to 50 per cent .

? Global warming of 2 ?C would put over 50 per cent of the continent ?s population at risk of undernourishment . Projections estimate that climate change will lead to an equivalent of two to four per cent annual loss in the Gross Domestic Product in the region by 2040 . ?

The 2014 World Climate Change Vulnerability Index classified Nigeria as one of the 10 most climate- vulnerable countries , and Lagos as the 10 th most vulnerable city in the world .

? It is possible to keep the climate below 1 . 5 degrees of warming but unlikely if we continue the way we are doing things now , ? the Chairman, Lekki Urban Forest and Animal Sanctuary Initiative, Mr . Desmond Majekodunmi, tells our correspondent .

He says , ?A few of the really catastrophic weather occurrences that happened last year are indicators of what happens when we allow it to go beyond what it is meant to be ; it is already one degree above average and we are seeing unprecedented types of weather occurrences all over the world.

? The process of reducing our carbon footprint requires some very fundamental attitudinal changes from us . ?