Don proposes new ministry for energy, climate change

Prof Adedayo Ayoade. Credit: UNILAG.

A Professor of Energy Transitions, Extractives and Governance Law at the University of Lagos, Adedayo Ayoade, has proposed the establishment of a new Federal Ministry of Energy and Climate Change Transitions to bring the petroleum, natural gas, renewable energy and electricity sectors under one coordinated structure.

Ayoade made the recommendation in his inaugural lecture, titled “Through the Lens of Tomorrow: Rethinking Nigeria’s Path to Sustainable Energy Governance,” where he called for the integration of energy and climate-related ministries, departments and agencies to improve coordination and reduce the cost of governance.

According to a copy of the paper made available to our correspondent on Monday, Ayoade called for the integration of energy and climate-related ministries, departments and agencies under a unified institutional structure, alongside a new national policy, legislation and agency to oversee the proposed framework.

In his recommended pathway to sustainable energy governance, he said, “Streamline energy and climate sector MDAs to ensure integration, cohesion, and reduced cost of governance – headed by a new Federal Ministry of Energy and Climate Change Transitions that holds petroleum, natural gas, renewable energy, electricity, climate change, and energy transition portfolios; adopt a Nigerian Energy and Climate Change Transitions Policy; enact a Nigerian Energy and Climate Change Transitions Act; and establish the Nigerian Energy and Climate Change Transitions Agency.”

The proposed ministry, he opined, would bring together responsibilities currently handled across separate institutions, which Ayoade argued have operated with limited coordination.

He said the fragmentation of the sector had created governance challenges and made it difficult to integrate energy policies with climate change objectives.

Beyond restructuring the ministries and agencies, Ayoade called for an independent mechanism to monitor and audit energy and climate governance.

He recommended creating a Sustainable Energy Transitions Governance Monitoring Directorate within the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, noting that its establishment would necessitate an amendment to the NEITI Act 2007.

He further suggested stronger sanctions for public officials who disregard governance rules, as well as transparent, merit-based appointments of qualified technocrats to lead energy and climate-related institutions.

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On accountability, the professor proposed the use of artificial intelligence to monitor compliance with laws, regulations, licences and contracts across the energy sector.

“Deploy artificial intelligence to monitor compliance with sustainable energy governance obligations in laws, regulations, licences and contracts. AI-powered compliance systems will strengthen regulatory oversight by improving reporting, monitoring and enforcement across the Energy and Climate Change Transitions MDAs and operators, “he stated.

Ayoade also advocated the inclusion of anti-corruption and integrity clauses in energy-sector contracts, with explicit prohibitions on bribery, corruption, conflicts of interest and other forms of unethical conduct.

He called for Nigeria to incorporate the principle of free, prior and informed consent into the national law to ensure that host communities participate in the approval of energy projects.

The recommendation is part of his argument for a governance framework that integrates petroleum, natural gas, electricity, renewable energy and climate change policies rather than treating them as separate areas.

The don maintained that the ultimate measure of energy-sector reform should be access to affordable and reliable energy for Nigerians.

“Every Nigerian, whether living in an urban or rural area, should have reliable access to affordable energy and thus development. This is a non-negotiable minimum standard of a modern society,” he said.

He argued that achieving sustainable energy governance would require comprehensive legal and regulatory reform, strong institutions and political commitment from the government and other stakeholders.

The professor also proposed constitutional reform to recognise cooperative ownership and sustainable energy governance as foundational principles of Nigeria’s energy sector, alongside stronger transparency, accountability and stakeholder