Dr. Sanusi Ohiare, a distinguished member of the University of Dundee Alumni Association and former Executive Director of the Rural Electrification Fund (REF) at the Rural Electrification Agency of Nigeria, delivered a compelling address at the 2023 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the University of Dundee Alumni Association, Nigeria Chapter.
Themed “Energizing Nigeria: Navigating Challenges, Embracing Renewables, and Shaping Global Governance,” the event held in Abuja, gathered esteemed alumni, guests, and stakeholders for an insightful dialogue.
Dr. Ohiare commenced his speech, by expressing gratitude for being a guest speaker among his peers and fellow alumni.
He emphasized the shared spirit of academic excellence and social responsibility instilled by their alma mater, acknowledging the collective efforts of the alumni in shaping Nigeria’s future.
Initially addressing a moment of confusion regarding his purported portfolio in the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Dr. Ohiare clarified his current position, citing his resignation from the Rural Electrification Agency of Nigeria to pursue the Governorship seat in Kogi State.
Reflecting on this experience, he humorously added the “highly politically experienced Technocrat” title to his résumé.
Transitioning to the core of his address, Dr. Ohiare drew from his tenure as the Executive Director of the Rural Electrification Fund under President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
He highlighted the pivotal role of the power sector in the government’s vision to elevate Nigeria’s economy to the one trillion-dollar GDP club by 2031.
Detailing the mandate bestowed upon him in 2017, Dr Ohiare outlined the ambitious electrification plan to provide electricity access for approximately 83 million Nigerians.
This included plans for 51 million individuals through grid extensions by distribution companies and an additional 32 million, primarily in rural areas, to be electrified through Solar Hybrid Mini-grids and Solar Home Systems.
He said:
”To the glory of God almighty, as at the time of my exit from REA, we succeeded in disrupting the subsector and made significant impact with the Public Private Sector Model we introduced, that led to a total new household connection of 500,000 (2.5 million Nigerians) via Minigrids and SHS with a total capacity of 12,197.25 kWp, creation of 3083 jobs, 2,683 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).
”We also provided Solar Electricity to power seven universities while another 14 are undergoing implementation and procurement.
”We energized 200 Primary Health Centres (PHCs), and 100 isolation centres with 10kwp systems and 50kWp systems, respectively, and was on track for another 400 PHCs as of February when I left.
”Due to our model, we raised over $600 million from various sources such as the World Bank, African Development Bank, European Union, German Government, Korean Government, Rural Electrification Fund, etc., which we leveraged to get a loan of 140 billion Naira from CBN and also crowd in private investments of close to a billion dollars within the time under reference.”
