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In 2021, Nigeria and China signed an agreement to boost renewable electricity in the West African country. The idea was to build and upgrade renewable energy facilities nationwide, and increase electricity supply in rural areas.
As a result of the pact, 200 sets of off-grid photovoltaic (solar) equipment were donated to Nigeria’s rural communities by PowerChina-Kunming Engineering Corporation and Yunnan province’s Department of Commerce. The donation was made under a scheme called “Green Energy Africa, One Belt, One Road Lightening Up of Thousands of Households”.
China Dialogue spoke to a recipient of the equipment, Magaji Shehu, 83-year-old head of the Gidan Yunfa community in Sokoto. He described it as a “dream” to most community members, who had lost hope of living in an electrified environment.
Prior to having the solar energy supply, villagers used to go to bed early, he said. But now, children play around the streetlights. “We are very happy to have this electricity project in our domain.”
Garba Ali, a 34-year-old farmer, said the community is happier with off-grid solar than a connection to the national grid, given the latter’s unreliability.
Meeting demand
It is not only overseas donations that have found a place in Nigeria’s solar-powered system. Chinese firms are “providing Nigerians with affordable solar panels, solar street lights, energy-saving bulbs, rechargeable lamps and fans, among other clean-energy products,” says Amadi Joshua, an electrical engineer with AY Global Energy, an Abuja-based solar power company.
Nuhu Isaac, a sales representative with Beebeejump Technology, a company based in Shenzhen with multiple offices in Nigeria, said: “Solar power is what matters to all Nigerians now, irrespective of their economic status.” The company says it sells off-grid solar products across all of Nigeria’s 36 states, using flexible billing and payment solutions to reach more customers.
Nnaji Collins, Nigeria customer service manager for Kang Ming Sheng Technology, another Shenzhen-based company, says they have helped in providing alternative power sources to millions of Nigerians, especially in remote areas. “Our rechargeable bulbs and solar bulbs serve millions of poultry farmers as well as shop owners,” he tells China Dialogue.
Solar future
Babatunde Fashola, former minister of works, power and housing, is optimistic about solar power development in Nigeria.
“The prospects of clean energy leapfrogging conventional sources are certainly within reach for Nigeria,” Fashola said. He added that this is particularly in light of rising diesel costs, “and partly due to the increased market penetration of renewable energy solutions.”
Chinese companies are likely to continue playing a role. At the 3rd Belt and Road Forum, held in Beijing in October, the Nigeria government received US$4 billion worth of “letters of intent” for investments and new projects in solar, clean energy and smart grid initiatives.
But with grid collapses and blackouts still a common reality, off-grid solar will have to develop quickly in order to provide better and cleaner power connectivity for Nigerians by 2030 – the government’s target year for universal energy access.
This article was produced as a result of a grant provided by the Africa-China Reporting Project at the Wits Centre for Journalism at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. The views expressed are the author’s.
This article was originally published on China Dialogue under a Creative Commons licence.
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