Nigerians have been asked by the Rural Electrification Agency to use energy effectively in order to guarantee its availability in both urban and rural areas.
The Nigeria Off-Grid Market Acceleration Programme, a donor-funded initiative aimed at accelerating off-grid energy access throughout the nation, organized a high-level stakeholder event in Abuja where the REA’s managing director, Ahmad Salihijo, made this call in his capacity as his special adviser, Barbara Izilein.
“By harnessing energy to drive productive activities, we can create jobs, increase incomes and improve the living standards of millions of Nigerians where these solutions are being deployed,” the REA boss stated.
The meeting was organized to build on the gains made in the sector and to stimulate learning and collaboration, according to Adedotun Eyinade, NOMAP’s programme director, who spoke at the event, which was attended by government leaders, investors, and other power sector stakeholders.
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The event, which was focused on how to finance off-grid renewable energy solutions for rural communities and marginalized groups, featured a panel session on ‘Productive Use Beyond Mini-Grid Viability’, and explored the socio-economic impact of productive use of energy interventions and how it could deliver inclusive impact for women and marginalized groups.
Similar to this, the session on “Financing Options for Productive Use” examined different financing strategies and commercial energy use business models across the nation.
In 2018, the Scaling Off-Grid Energy Grand Challenge for Development partnership, comprised of the Shell Foundation, UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office, and USAID Power Africa, developed the Nigeria Off-Grid Market Acceleration Programme.
Story adapted from Punch
