FG's Rural Electrification Project Targets 25 Million Nigerians Before 2028
- The federal government has set a new target, to take electricity to 25 million Nigerians by 2028
- The Rural Electrification Agency (REA) MD, Abba Aliyu explained how this project will be funded
- Aliyu also gives insight into the pricing framework that will be applied in the project, to ensure sustainability
Legit.ng journalist Ruth Okwumbu-Imafidon has over a decade of experience in business reporting across digital and mainstream media.
The Rural Electrification Agency (REA) has unveiled a three-year plan to provide 25 million Nigerians with access to electricity by 2028.
This plan will focus on closing the gap in electricity access, particularly for Nigerians in underserved areas that are off the grid.
Speaking about this plan in a television show Abba Aliyu, the new Managing Director of REA, explained that sustainable and affordable energy solutions such as mini-grids would be deployed to those areas, to light them up and drive economic growth.
Source: UGC
President Bola Tinubu just recently announced Abba Abubakar Aliyu as the new MD of the REA.
How FG will fund electrification project
Aliyu disclosed on the show that the project has attracted funding commitments from international partners and will adopt a sustainable commercial structure, the GUARDIAN reports.
He also recalled that the federal government had secured $750 million in funding from the World Bank to provide electricity for about 17.5 million Nigerians, adding that the funds would be used judiciously to achieve maximal impacts.
The project will be phased to deploy sustainable and efficient solutions to regions based on identified infrastructural needs.
He noted that while about 30 million Nigerians will be on isolated mini-grids, another 12 million will be connected to standalone home systems and mesh grids, and 1.5 million will be on interconnected mini-grids.
Recall that this is part of the energy diversification suggested by former minister of power, Professor Barth Nnaji as a way to address power supply problems in Nigeria.
Nigerians will pay a cost-reflective price
Aliyu stated that President Bola Tinubu's administration is committed to taking electricity to Nigerians in underserved areas, and in line with that, the REA had been given the target to achieve electricity for 25 million Nigerians in 3 years.
The REA boss added that such projects can only be sustainable in the long term when they have a commercial framework.
He said;
“I would like to make a very clear statement that any framework regarding electricity, any infrastructure framework designed to provide electricity for free is bound to fail. The cost of providing electricity, which is the tariff, must be cost-reflective because sustainability is key.”
Recall that the Special Adviser to the President on Energy, Olu Verheijen recently spoke on the fair pricing system the federal government would be introducing to the electricity system.
Verheijen noted that the current system has the government spending over N200 billion on electricity subsidies monthly, and explained that a more cost-reflective system will be implemented.
FG targets N25trn revenue from FIRS in 2025
Meanwhile, the federal government has also set a revenue target of N25 trillion for the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) in 2025.
This target is coming after the tax administrator surpassed the 2024 tax revenue target by 11.34%, raking in a total of N21 trillion.
Executive Chairman of FIRS, Zacch Adedeji mapped out a strategy with his team to achieve this tax target in 2025, noting that the government needs this revenue to finance critical sectors of the economy.
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Source: Legit.ng
