Participants at an energy workshop have called for a collaboration between stakeholders to increase energy access in Nigeria.
Speaking variously, they argued that Nigeria’s energy transition requires a state of emergency and the complete collaboration of all stakeholders to attain energy security in Nigeria.
This was the summation of presentations and remarks at the inauguration of the newly elected Governing Council of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Associations Alliance (REEEA-A).
According to Prof. Magnus Onuoha, the President of the REEEA-A, the Energy Alliance provides a platform for all stakeholders in the energy sector to come together and drive better engagements that will ensure increased energy access in Nigeria.
Speaking at the inauguration, Prof. Onuoha listed several areas of focus that the new governing council would focus on; including increased public awareness of the energy sector as well as a wholistic outlook on the electricity act, recently signed into law by the President Bola Tinubu.
“This focus is one of the reasons why we have hosted the Workshop for Journalists on the Electricity Act”, says Prof. Onuoha, referring to the pre-inauguration Media Capacity Workshop hosted by the Energy Alliance.
The Electricity Act, according to Dr Joy Ogaji, provides a clear picture of why the energy transition has not really picked up steam.
Dr Ogaji, who is the Chief Executive Officer of the Association of Power Generating Companies (APGC), said the Electricity Act was signed into law without adequate input from different stakeholders and this has already created challenges of implementation of the provisions of the act.
She disclosed that while Nigeria could generate as much as 400mw from renewable energies, unfortunately the sub-sector was not competitively priced which remains one of the major drawbacks to penetration of solar energy in Nigeria.
Her presentations prompted remarks from participants including journalists at the workshop, who sought fact checked data on the provisions of the electricity act, how it would be implemented across the country on a state by state basis and how it would impact on Nigeria’s energy transition drive.
Highlight of the colocated event was the inclusion of Persons with special needs, women and youths as part of the workshop segment, presented by Prof. Frank Amagwu, retired director of operations of the central bank of nigeria, who spoke on entrepreneurship and empowerment, focusing on how renewable energy could be a developmental game changer.
The newly inaugurated members of the governing council include, Prof Magnus Onuoha, President; Mrs Anita Adeyemi, Vicee President; Abbas Musa, Financial Secretary; Mrs Halima Isa Ibrahim, Treasurer and Sam Ifeanyi Nwosu, Publicity Secretary.
