Idowu Patrick
The Rural Electrification Agency (REA) proudly announces that over the past decade, it has successfully attracted more than $2 billion in investments within the renewable energy sector. In a statement released in Abuja, Mutari Ibrahim, REA’s Director of Promotion and Outreach, highlighted the agency’s strategic partnerships with international organizations such as the World Bank, African Development Bank, Global Alliance for People and Planet, Rocky Mountain Institute, the Japan International Cooperation Agency, and several others.
Among REA’s esteemed partners are Sustainable Energy for ALL, Agence Française de Développement, the United Kingdom Nigeria Infrastructure Advisory Facility, the European Union, the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation, Global Environment Facility, and the United States Agency for International Development.
Ibrahim further emphasized the agency’s remarkable achievements in delivering reliable power to rural communities. From 2020 to the present, REA has electrified over 7.5 million individuals, including 1.5 million households, through the implementation of 130 mini-grid projects and 1.3 million standalone home systems. Additionally, REA has successfully deployed more than 1,650 kilometers of solar street lights, enhancing power accessibility, security, and economic growth in rural regions.
Under the capital budget, REA completed 1,403 projects, encompassing solar street lights, mini-grid initiatives, standalone home systems, and grid extension projects. The agency’s contributions extend across various programs, including the Energizing Education Programme, Energizing Agriculture Programme, Beyond COVID-19, and Economic Clusters, which collectively have supplied over 65 megawatts of power throughout Nigeria’s six geo-political zones.
As Ibrahim reported, REA’s decade of dedication has resulted in the delivery of over 500 megawatts of power, electrification of numerous communities, creation of 500,000 new jobs, and the attraction of over $2 billion in investments within the renewable energy sector. In a bid to further empower its mission, the organization received an additional N4 billion in capital injection grants for 2022 as part of the national strategy for poverty reduction and growth strategy program. These grants are intended to provide clean power standalone home systems to more than 50,000 locations, encompassing rural homes, micro-businesses, schools, and faith-based institutions.
In light of these achievements, REA has secured advance approval for a $750 million facility with the World Bank to expand renewable and rural electrification initiatives, contributing additional resources to Nigeria during challenging times. Furthermore, in response to subsidy removal, REA is actively implementing interventions to develop electric mobility, mini-grids, distribute home systems, and deploy streetlights, with the potential to support up to 250,000 households by 2024.
