Nigeria’s Rural Electrification Agency (REA) has announced plans to provide support to 250,000 households with initiatives such as electric mobility, mini-grids, and home systems.
The Director of Promotion and Outreach (PIO), Malam Mutari Ibrahim revealed this in a statement last Sunday.
“In response to subsidy removal, REA is implementing interventions to develop electric mobility, mini-grids, distribute home systems, deploy streetlights, potentially supporting up to 250,000 households in the coming year,” he said.
Ibrahim said that the agency had equally deployed more than 1,650 kilometres (KM) of solar streetlights, improving power, security, and economic growth in rural areas.
According to him, REA has accomplished 1,403 projects within the capital budget, providing solar streetlights, mini-grid projects, standalone home systems, and grid extension works.
“Through various programmes, including the Energizing Education Programme. Energizing Agriculture Programme beyond COVID-19, and Economic Clusters, REA delivered more than 65 Mega Watts (MW) of power across Nigeria’s six geo-political zones.
“The agency has delivered more than 500MW of power, electrified numerous communities, created 500,000 new jobs, and attracted over two billion dollars in investments in the renewable energy sector over the past decade.
”In advancing these achievements, we have established partnerships with the World Bank, the African Development Bank, and the Global Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP),” he said.
Ibrahim further noted that REA is working in collaboration with other stakeholders to accomplish the feat of providing accessible electricity to homes in rural communities.
According to him, this strategic partnership enables the agency to achieve its objective of powering homes and small businesses across the country.
“Other partnerships secured are with Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Sustainable Energy for ALL (SE4ALL), Agence Française de Développement (AFD), and the United Kingdom Nigeria Infrastructure Advisory Facility (UKNIAF),” he said.
He said that the agency also secured partnerships with the European Union, the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), the Global Environment Facility (GEF), and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
“Others are the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Korean Institute of Advancement of Technology (KIAT)”.
Ibrahim said that from 2020 to date, REA has provided power to more than 7.5 million people, including 1.5 million households, delivering 130 Mini-Grid Projects, including 1.3 million standalone home systems.
According to him, most recently, the Nigeria Electrification Project (NEP), and REA negotiated and secured the advance approval of a 750-million-dollar facility with the World Bank.
The aim he said was to expand renewable and rural electrification initiatives, providing additional resources to Nigeria during a challenging period.
”In 2022, as part of the National Poverty Reduction and Growth Strategy (NPRGS) Programme, REA secured an additional four billion in capital injection grants.
”To provide clean power standalone home systems to more than 50,000 locations, including rural homes, micro-businesses, schools, and faith-based institutions,” he added.
