In a bid to strengthen service delivery in the Nigerian power sector, the special adviser to the president on energy, Ms Olu Verheijen, on Thursday paid a courtesy visit to the federal ministry of power.
Recently, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu signed into law the 2023 Electricity Act, after which he appointed special advisers to assist him in various areas.
During Verheijen’s visit, the permanent secretary of the ministry of power, Temitope Peter Fashedemi, in his welcome address, said that the ministry has put into motion the machinery that will further improve, stabilize, sustain and deliver power to the citizenry.
Fashedemi termed the visit of the special adviser to the president on energy as iconic and an avenue to unbundle some of the issues as it affects the power sector.
“Some of these issues that have affected the power sector are hanging and some can become very critical. We are hopeful that you will be able to identify some of the issues as the technical directors and heads of agencies under the ministry give brief on all the ongoing or finishing projects,” he said.
In her remarks, Verheijen stressed that the power sector is very critical, as it is a determining factor to growth and productivity of any nation.
According to her, “it’s central to our ability to grow productivity and take our proper place as the power house of this continent, so what you do is important.”
Appreciating the effort of the Ministry in the past years, Verheijen noted that there have been lots of reforms done, which will bring about the much positive impact desired.
While speaking on the need for absolute synergy among all the stakeholders, the special adviser said that there is more work ahead and a holistic approach will be adopted for a lasting solution.
Her words: “We must create an enabling environment that will allow private sector to flow and electricity tariffs which will be affordable to households that are the major consumers.”
Earlier, the technical directors and heads of agencies under the ministry took turns to speak on the issues, challenges and the way forward in making the power sector to become more viable.
