Nigeria is in the grip of a severe heat surge, and experts point to a powerful combination of local pollution and global climate change as the primary drivers. In oil-producing communities like those in Akwa Ibom State, the cause is immediate and visible: relentless gas flaring. A PREMIUM TIMES investigation reveals that flares, which have been burning for over a month in some areas, sit as close as 118 metres to homes, turning night into day and subjecting residents to constant, unbearable heat .
On a national scale, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) has issued urgent warnings, predicting warmer-than-average temperatures across the country throughout early 2026 . This is part of a global pattern, with 2025 recorded as one of the hottest years ever. Experts link the intensifying heat to climate change, which has disrupted traditional weather patterns, weakened the cooling harmattan winds, and led to extreme temperatures that fuel public health crises like dehydration and meningitis outbreaks . The message is clear: Nigeria’s heat surge is a crisis born of both industrial practices and a warming planet.
