REA restores power to Kano communities after 16 years

Managing Director, Rural Electrification Agency, Dr Abba Aliyu

The Rural Electrification Agency says it has restored electricity to two communities in Kano State after 16 years without power.

 The agency said it achieved the feat through the unveiling of two mini-grid projects expected to serve 2,222 households.

 The Managing Director of the REA, Abba Aliyu, disclosed this during the commissioning of the projects, comprising a 195-kilowatt-peak system in Ballagaza and a 70kWp system in Marayar Rogo, both located in Warawa.

 In a statement on Thursday, Aliyu said the projects were part of efforts to achieve the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda target of providing electricity to more than 17 million Nigerians.

 He described the projects as an example of the benefits of public-private partnerships, noting that the private sector played a major role in delivering the infrastructure.

 “The Federal Government did not build these mini-grids and hand them over. Alfuttaim Nigeria Limited invested its own money, built them, and will own and operate them for many years. What the government did, through the DARES programme delivered by the REA with support from the World Bank, was to subsidise part of the cost to ensure the electricity is affordable for you,“ Aliyu stated.

 He added that the government-backed programme was expanding electricity access across underserved communities.

 “Under DARES, Nigeria is working toward 1,350 mini-grids, and the programme has already brought new or improved electricity to more than 5 million Nigerians. Our country still has more people without electricity than any other nation in the world. That challenge will not be solved by a single agency or programme; it will be solved community by community, in places like Ballagaza and Marayar Rogo, when private companies are willing to invest, and communities take ownership of what is built for them. The government’s job is to keep its word to both,” the managing director added.

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 Aliyu also commended the Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, for identifying electricity as a key priority of his administration and providing an enabling environment for the projects.

 The projects are expected to improve economic activities in the beneficiary communities, particularly agricultural processing and small-scale businesses.

 The Gabazawa community, known for producing groundnuts, millet, sorghum and soya, as well as its blacksmiths, weavers and dyers, is expected to benefit from improved production through access to electricity.

 With the new power supply, groundnuts can be processed into oil and kuli-kuli using electric machines, enabling producers to improve output and sell their products at better prices.

 The mini-grid will also supply electricity to the community’s primary healthcare centre, which previously operated without power.

 Speaking at the event, the Co-founder of Alfuttaim, Nabilah Sani, expressed delight at the completion of the projects, saying they would provide electricity to households and support agricultural productivity.

 She thanked the Federal Government for facilitating the funding that made the projects possible, adding that the two sites were among 10 locations currently under development in Kano State.

 Sani urged residents to protect the electricity infrastructure and avoid vandalism.