Vice-President Kashim Shettima has emphasized that Nigeria cannot achieve meaningful economic development without addressing the critical challenges in the power sector.
He called on governors to put aside their differences and work together to resolve the ongoing power crisis, which he believes is key to transforming Nigeria into an industrialized nation.
While inaugurating the ad hoc committee on national electrification, Shettima pointed to other countries such as Indonesia, India, South Africa, and Uganda, which face similar energy challenges but have managed to position themselves as leaders in the post-industrial revolution era, according to TheCable.
He noted that a common factor among these countries is their success in resolving energy insufficiency. Shettima stressed that Nigeria must follow suit, stating that meaningful national economic development cannot be realized without addressing power sector issues and ensuring accessible, available, and affordable energy for all Nigerians.
The vice-president also expressed concern over the lack of formal electricity access for an estimated 40-70 percent of Nigerians. Despite these challenges, he remained optimistic that the expertise and experience of state governors and other committee members would bring about positive change and improve the situation.
Shettima acknowledged the fundamental issues plaguing the country’s power sector, particularly the frequent system collapses that continue to disrupt the national grid.
“One common thing with these countries and others in the post-industrial revolution community is that they have largely resolved the issue of energy insufficiency,” Shettima said.
“There is no doubt that we cannot dream of meaningful national economic development without addressing the issue in the power sector and ensuring that Nigerians have accessible, available and affordable energy, ” he added.
