The Managing Director, Rural Electrification Agency, Dr Abba Aliyu, speaks with select journalists on the agency’s completion of a nationwide energy mapping exercise that identified more than 750,000 communities, as well as the central role of electricity in driving economic growth and supporting emerging technologies. OKECHUKWU NNODIM was there
How important is reliable electricity to Nigeria’s development, particularly as Artificial Intelligence continues to reshape the global economy?
Power stimulates economic development and growth, enhances agriculture, improves the quality of health services, and enhances the quality of education, especially now that we are in the era of artificial intelligence. The future is the electrification of everything, which means that whatever you do will depend on electricity, with AI at its centre.
If you are going to receive medical treatment, it will be powered or supported by AI. Precision agriculture is already taking place, and AI is enabling that. Manufacturing and many other sectors are benefiting as well. However, AI cannot function without electricity. Electricity is the backbone that powers AI, and I will give you a typical example.
Many of us have used ChatGPT, which is a well-known AI platform, but what many people do not realise is that behind every response generated by AI is a packet of electricity that powers the process. We are already seeing this play out. The future is one in which electricity will determine almost everything we do, and Nigeria is not being left behind. Under the administration of Mr. President, we are working to ensure that every Nigerian has access to electricity.
