Hon Rukayat Shittu Installs Solar Lights in 45 Energy-Starved Communities in Owode Onire
…reveals plan to sponsor energy bill…
The youngest lawmaker in Nigeria and member of the Kwara State House of Assembly, representing Owode Onire constituency, Hon Rukayat Shittu has facilitated the installation of solar light to 45 energy starved communities in Owode Onire constituency.
She also reveals that she’s working with the Kwara State government to domesticate Energy Act in the state.
Full statement
My office has recently completed the installation of solar lights in 45 energy-starved communities within Owode Onire constituency.
This is part of my constituency outreach to light up underserved rural communities in my constituency.
It is our understanding that investment in clean energy in rural communities is better than waiting for massive grid electricity access, which is very expensive and not sustainable and prioritizing energy access in a sustainable way extends clean energy to marginalized communities without draining government purse.
Despite investment in grid electricity over the years, there’s still a gap to cover, especially in rural constituencies like ours, where several communities have no access to electricity.
Some rural communities in my constituency do not have access to energy and those with access can hardly afford to pay for the energy they consume, thereby limiting electricity supply.
It is a known fact that Nigeria has lowest access to electricity globally, with more than 92 million Nigerians without access to electricity.
Read Also:
Electrification advances in Nigeria failed to keep pace with population growth, as the power problem in the country remained perennial, stifling the country’s industrial growth, limiting commercial ventures expansion and profitability and the well being of the people and despite the establishment of a federal agency, Rural Electrification Agency (REA) to confront the challenges of electricity access in the country, the situation has not improved at the required pace, thereby limiting the reach of supply.
The World Bank estimated that Nigeria would need to connect between 500,000-800,000 new households to electricity sources every year to 2030 to be able to achieve the target of universal access to electricity and this is a work in progress.
The Kwara State government has made significant progress in rural electrification and this explains why Kwara State is one of the top 3 states in Nigeria with highest access to electricity per household in the country, Lagos (99.3%), Ekiti (92.7%) and Kwara with 90.6%, yet the Owode Onire constituency falls amongst the 10% population of Kwara State still seeking more access to electricity.
This is why we embark on this project to assist our people in our own little way, as the government continues to fashion out more sustainable ways of expanding access and ensuring affordability.
I am also glad to say that, with the recent decentralization of electricity through the new energy act, 2023, the state is doing its best to take ownership of the sector across the value chain, starting with the creation of a law governing the sector and creation of energy market.
I am working with Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq-led administration to sponsor a bill to domesticate the electricity act in Kwara State.
