President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has asked Nigerians not to expect a “magical response” to the electricity challenges in the country.
Speaking during the visit of German President, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Tinubu highlighted ongoing reforms aimed at fostering a business-friendly environment and attracting foreign investment in the country.
Speaking on epileptic power supply and regular power grid collapse, President Tinubu warned that even though Siemens Energy is “working very hard” to fulfil its part of the partnership, Nigerians should not expect a “magical response” due to the state of existing power infrastructure.
He said, “Nigeria, being a nation in a hurry, wants a magical response. But don’t forget, those transmission lines are about 50 to 60 years old.
“The snags are what we are trying to improve and reduce the possibility of problems. We are doing that. I’ve signed a reform that decentralised the power distribution and generation in the country. The states and various subsectors and subnational can generate their power and distribute it; they are working on it all.
“We have German businesses who are promoting alternative sources of energy, and they are here. We have the sun; they have the technology. I think we can utilise that for rural electrification; as mentioned earlier on, we can use the various dams that are not effective. We assure you that we will put these dams to use for the benefit of our people.”
The President also underscored the importance of youth training, solid minerals, and industrial partnerships in advancing Nigeria’s development agenda.
“We have a brilliant youth population that is energetic and ready to learn. We have a population that is market-friendly. We have an industrial plan that is anxious to establish assembly plants.
“We equally have solid minerals and the best proportion we can harness to attract German businesses and partners for progress.”