The vice chairman, Tonwei Refinery Nigeria Ltd, Dr. Thaddaeus Thompson, at the weekend said it has become urgent for the Federal Government to boost rural electrification in the face of economic downturn.
Thompson who is also an industrialist for over 30 years said the focus on rural electrification will bring about unprecedented grassroots development and industrialisation will boost the rural economy and drastically reduce rural-urban migration.
In his assertion, the government should come up with a downward review of tariff for the rural dwellers that will also generate revenue for the government, whereby they could also sustain the power infrastructure in their communities through business activities.
He said: “Nigerian government both at the state and federal level might hesitate to advance electrification to rural areas for fear it would be costly, unreliable, wasteful, and to some degree unnecessary.
“The reason it has never worked in Nigeria is not because Nigerians cannot pay; it is because the lack of electrification in rural areas eliminates the possibility of rural development and industrialization, forcing people to flee the rural areas and congest the cities and subsequently creating short supply electricity.
“The absence of electrification cost the government millions of Naira in revenues monthly which would have been revenue from small and home-base businesses. Electrification of rural areas has environmental benefits in many ways including the possibility to establish a waste recycling plant, which could create jobs and produce fertilizer and renewable energy for the entire region.
“The fact that electrification of urban areas has proved unsuccessful does not mean the government must relent on electrification of the rural areas. Electrification carries far greater benefits for the government than the cost of supply.”
According to him, to minimize cost, the government should embark on renewable energy such as solar power, and reposition its expectations on return to long-term benefits.
Once an area has experienced the benefit of electrification, it would be prepared to pay to sustain it. The job of the government would be to supply, and the demand will respond reciprocally.
He also urged the government to consider the health of rural dwellers by providing massive rural electrification projects in order to prevent terminal diseases and various environmental hazards by providing.
“So far the records confirm that connecting electricity to rural areas actually decreased the cost of operating lighting and Televisions (Compared to the cost of burning kerosene lamps and using lithium batteries).
“Indoor air quality can be improved, which helps prevent lung disease caused by inhaling toxic fumes from kerosene lamps. It also lowers environmental pollution caused by improper disposal of lithium batteries and oil”, Thompson stated.
