News Investigators/ The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), says the global shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy is inevitable and must be properly managed to avoid worsening energy poverty in the country.
Orji Ogbonnaya Orji, Executive Secretary, NEITI, said this on Tuesday at a Chief Executive Officers/Media Roundtable on “Building a Framework for Engagement on Energy Transition Costs and Impacts for Non-State Actors” in Abuja.
Mr Orji, while presenting the interim report of a study on the impact of energy transition on Nigeria’s economy, said that the shift posed challenges to jobs, infrastructure, host communities and government revenues.
“You all know that the global shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy is reshaping economies already and societies everywhere.
“For Nigeria, this transition is no longer an option; it’s inevitable. But if not properly managed, it could double the existing energy poverty in the country,” he said.
According to him, about 86 million Nigerians still lack access to reliable power supply and the transition, if poorly handled, could worsen their situation.
He said that while the process presented risks, it could also offer opportunities for innovation, diversification and repositioning the economic sector of the country.
“NEITI is approaching this with credible data and evidence, not as a formality, but as an urgent necessity,” he said.
He explained that the study, supported by the Ford Foundation, was anchored in NEITI’s climate change, energy transition and environmental accountability policy.
According to him, the policy commits to tracking emissions, stranded assets and government compliance with environmental justice and transition commitments.
Mr Orji called on stakeholders, media, civil society, government, industry players and development partners among others to play their roles in ensuring a just and inclusive transition.
“The media must investigate and amplify findings, civil society should mobilise citizens to demand transparency, while industry players should balance profitability with sustainability.
“Development partners must align financing and technical support towards a just transition,” he said.
He stressed that Nigeria and other resource-dependent nations must demand equal access to global climate finance and technology transfer to enable them to fund transition investments.
“The study provides data and evidence to strengthen Nigeria’s voice in these debates.”
The NEITI boss, nevertheless, explained that the final report would guide policies, influence reforms and empower citizens.
Also speaking, Mr Mathew Adole, Alternate Chair of the National Stakeholders Working Group (NSWG), said that the planned transition posed significant risks to oil-dependent economies like Nigeria.
He said that the study was approved to deepen understanding of the transition and ensure effective engagement with the country’s policy design and implementation.
“The planned transition from fossil oil, particularly oil, gas and coal, to renewable energy poses significant risks to the economies of oil and gas-dependent economies such as Nigeria.
“Nigeria depends largely on oil and gas, not only for export and revenue, but for its consumption.
“Reorganising the need to deepen our knowledge about the pollution, the NSWG wasted no time in approving the study, which we are convinced would facilitate engagement on the country’s transition policy and implementation,” he said.
According to him, the work, when completed, will serve as a vital resource for advocacy on energy transition.
NAN
