NIGERIA loses an estimated $25 billion every year due to the lack of electricity and related infrastructure, the managing director of the Rural Electrification Agency, Abba Aliyu, has disclosed.
Aliyu disclosed on Friday in Abuja during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Rural Electrification Agency and Galaxy Backbone, aimed at delivering electricity and digital connectivity to public institutions such as schools, hospitals, and security agencies across the country.
He said the initiative is part of the administration of President Bola Tinubu’s efforts to drive inclusive development and realise its vision of a $ 1 trillion economy.
According to him, the partnership will address the infrastructural gaps that have held back development and economic growth in underserved communities.
He noted that the absence of electricity in many parts of the country continues to exclude millions from financial and digital opportunities.
“For us, today (Friday), we are showing and demonstrating how two different government agencies can collaborate towards the development of this country.
“Today, we are showing we are planting the seed to unlock a $25bn economy. The cost of lack of electricity and associated development initiatives within the country is costing the country $25bn annually,” he said.
Aliyu also linked the lack of electricity to poor financial inclusion and a digital divide in rural communities.
“The nexus between electricity, financial inclusion, and the digital economy cannot be overemphasised. We have seen it over and over in the study that wherever there is no electricity, there is no financial inclusion, and there is no digital value that has been created within those communities,” he said
Nigeria, according to the REA boss, has the highest number of people without access to electricity globally, a situation that hinders its digital economy ambitions and inclusive growth goals.
“Nigeria has the highest number of people without electricity, which by extension means that the country has the highest number of people that are financially excluded, and they are not reaping the benefit of the digital economy,” he added.
Also speaking, the Managing Director of Galaxy Backbone, Prof. Ibrahim Adeyanju, said the partnership would enhance the delivery of government services by making key public institutions more efficient and digitally connected.
He said the project will begin with the deployment of electricity and internet infrastructure to select federal institutions in Abuja, including the National Hospital and some security agencies.
“We are going to target public institutions to make them more efficient and reduce the cost of governance,” he said.
Adeyanju added that the long-term goal is to extend this infrastructure to the local government level, in line with President Tinubu’s push to strengthen governance at the grassroots.
“Imagine providing access to the internet and electricity to the lowest micro-level of the sub-national, the local government level. Imagine how we would transform local government administration.
“And this is very much also in line with Mr President, where the roles and responsibilities of local government have been brought back to make them more effective and to make sure that governance has gone down to the community level,” he said.
He maintained that the collaboration would ensure that universities, hospitals, and other government institutions benefit from seamless access to both power and broadband connectivity.
The partnership reflects the Federal Government’s strategy to leverage inter-agency collaboration for national development, with a focus on electrification, digital infrastructure, and inclusive service delivery.
Both agencies affirmed their commitment to ensuring that no community is left behind in the Renewed Hope Agenda of the current administration.