Nigeria Can’t Dream Of Economic Development Without Addressing Issue In Power Sector_ Shettima

Vice-President Kashim Shettima says Nigeria cannot dream of meaningful economic development without addressing the issue in the power sector.

Shettima spoke on Thursday when he inaugurated the National Economic Council (NEC) ad hoc committee on national electrification.

He urged the governors to set aside their differences and address the power sector crisis, contributing to Nigeria’s transformation into an industrialised nation.

While inaugurating the ad hoc committee on national electrification, the vice-president cited countries like Indonesia, India, South Africa, and Uganda, which face similar energy challenges but have positioned themselves among leading nations in the post-industrial revolution era.

“One common thing with these countries and others in the post-industrial revolution community is that they have largely resolved the issue of energy insufficiency,” Shettima said.

“There is no doubt that we cannot dream of meaningful national economic development without addressing the issue in the power sector and ensuring that Nigerians have accessible, available and affordable energy.”

The vice-president expressed concern that an estimated 40-70 percent of Nigerians lack formal access to electricity.

He, however, expressed confidence that the expertise and experience of state governors and other committee members will change the narrative in a positive trajectory.

Shettima acknowledged the fundamental issues in the country’s power sector, particularly the frequent system collapses affecting the national grid.

The vice-president expressed hope that there will soon be significant improvement following the recent reforms in the energy sector which have opened the sector, “not only to the participation of, otherwise, excluded players, but also to attract investments, both foreign and local.”

“I believe we are well endowed with resources, be it gas, hydro or solar, that allow us to have an optimal energy mix and leverage these resources to build a sector in a resilient manner that ensures energy security for every Nigerian,” he added.

Shettima urged members of the national electrification ad hoc committee to come on board and work for the nation.

Members of the NEC ad hoc committee on national electrification include governors of Katsina, Gombe, Osun, Imo and Plateau states; minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy; minister of budget and economic planning; minister of power, and special adviser to the president on NEC/climate change.

Others include special adviser to the president; managing director and chief executive officer (CEO) of Rural Electrification Agency (REA); CEO of Nigeria Governors Forum; managing director and CEO of Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC); FGN Power Company, and NEC secretariat.

In his remarks, Bassey Edet Otu, chairman of the NEC ad hoc committee on national electrification and Cross River state governor, noted that the vice-president has assigned the committee four key mandates aimed at addressing the persistent national grid failures.

He said their next step is to get to work diligently and deliver credible, achievable, and sustainable outcomes.

“In the command list, one is to put an end to consistent grid collapse in the energy sector and to work towards deepening states’ engagement within the Electricity Reform Act 2023 to address the challenges in the power sector to the best expectation of Nigerians and the National Electrification Strategy and Implementation plan,” Otu said.

The governor acknowledged the enormity of the committee’s tasks but expressed confidence in the members’ individual and collective capacity, stressing their strong commitment to the president’s renewed hope agenda and the core values of nation-building.