According to Mr. Richard Montgomery, the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Nigeria’s success hinges on managing her electricity industry, he stated in Abuja on Wednesday.
At a roundtable discussion on the Electricity Act of 2023 with the theme “Implications and Opportunities for State Electricity Markets,” Montgomery made this announcement.
The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office is providing funding for the two-day event, which is being coordinated by the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) and overseen by the United Kingdom Nigeria Infrastructural Advisory Facility.
Ms Gill Atkinson, the Deputy British High Commissioner to Nigeria, represented Montgomery at the roundtable.
He asked Nigeria to figure out how to link inclusive growth with the power industry.
“Now is the time to look into new avenues for expanding the reach of electricity delivery to more Nigerians.”
Priority must be given to initiatives that support greater off-grid and on-grid integration of renewable energy.
“Nigeria made outstanding promises for both the future of its electricity sector and COP26. This conference will assist Nigeria in fulfilling its obligations, the speaker stated.
The 26th UN climate change conference, known as COP 26, took place in Glasgow from October 31 to November 13, 2021.
“We also need to figure out how to link inclusive growth and the power sector.” “Getting the power sector right is critical to Nigeria’s prosperity,” the speaker stated.
About 90 million Nigerians and the nation’s economy, according to the envoy, were being impacted by the power sector deficit. To address this issue, the envoy urged Nigerians to collaborate with the new government.
“This place has a new government. It has started implementing significant macroeconomic changes. The country and its citizens are suffering short-term hardships as a result of the fuel subsidies and exchange rate.
In the medium to long run, these are beneficial adjustments that will enable Nigeria to reach its full potential.
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The Nigerian electricity industry is a component of this and a crucial one at that. Regrettably, the nation has the biggest absolute electricity deficit in the world.
Ninety million individuals are impacted. According to Atkinson, “even Nigerians who are connected to the grid experience frequent outages and do not get reliable supply.”
She went on to say that Nigeria needed to recognise and comprehend the effects of the country’s power supply issues on both its citizens and its economy.
““The purpose of our gathering is to collaborate on the credible reform process required to address the necessary policy and regulatory changes.
“To ensure that things are handled in an integrated way, we must cooperate.
“A key element of the current reforms is the Electricity Act, which was passed in June of this year,” she stated.
Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara, the NGF Chairman, had earlier stated that the forum was supporting subnational electricity programmes to aid in the growth of competitive, diverse, and sustainable electricity markets.
According to AbdulRazaq, the forum thought that the move would expand Nigeria’s power market in a way that would make it more competitive.
“We support collaboration and seeking out different perspectives on how to accomplish a common objective. This is the reason this roundtable is so crucial, and we are excited to resume participation in this significant occasion.
“I hope we leave here with a better understanding of how to interface with existing structures and implement the Electricity Act,” AbdulRazaq stated.
Growth in the power sector will unavoidably spark economic development in Nigeria and have a favourable effect on all other sectors, according to NGF Director-General Mr. Asishana Okauru.
According to Okauru, the updated Electricity Act 2023 marked a critical turning point in providing the public with a steady, dependable, and effective electricity supply.
He pointed out that the Act also offered a framework for the production, transmission, and distribution of power by the private sector.
According to Okauru, the roundtable marked the beginning of a series of discussions and events aimed at accelerating the nation’s electrical sector’s development and expansion.
“We are frequently informed that the subnational electricity market would open with the signing of the Electricity Act 2023 and the Constitution’s revision.
“This makes great sense to industry actors and stakeholders, but it’s just jargon to laypeople and maybe most people in general.
therefore, it is our responsibility to assist in making this extremely complicated and technological undertaking simpler in a way that both the governed and the government will completely understand.
“We have had and will continue to have discussions with international donor organisations and development partners who have demonstrated a remarkable interest in aiding us in making this initiative a success,” Okauru stated.
He continued by saying that the Nigeria Sub-National Electricity Markets Support Programme would be the name of the support initiative that the NGF intended to introduce.
The goal of this NGF flagship project, according to Okauru, is to make it easier for the nation’s sub-national power markets to grow into ones that are competitive, sustainable, and diverse. In NAN
