Nigeria’s electricity challenge is not a story of a country without reforms. It is a story of a sector that has undergone significant transformation over the past two decades yet continues to grapple to address one persistent development challenge: access to reliable electricity.
From the Electric Power Sector Reform Act of 2005 to the privatisation of generation and distribution assets in 2013, Nigeria’s power sector has moved through several important phases designed to improve efficiency, attract private investment and strengthen electricity delivery. However, the experience of the past two decades has demonstrated that solving this challenge requires more than expanding generation capacity.
The real challenge lies in building an interconnected ecosystem capable of regulatory certainty, investment frameworks and the technical capacity to develop and sustain large-scale projects. The Electricity Act 2023 represents the most significant attempt yet to address this challenge. By decentralising key aspects of electricity regulation and creating opportunities for states, private investors, and subnational entities to participate more actively in the power sector. Importantly, it enables local actors and state governments to participate directly in electricity generation and distribution, creating a clearer pathway for tailored solutions designed to expand access to unserved and underserved communities.
