Nigeria’s ambitious $2 billion investment in renewable energy has yielded a surprisingly low 76,000 jobs, a stark contrast to the 16.2 million jobs supported by the global solar industry. This significant gap, flagged by Dr. Abba Aliyu, Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), underscores an urgent need for a strategic pivot towards developing local capacity. The REA warns that Nigeria cannot achieve a sustainable energy transition reliant on perpetual import dependence.
Speaking at the 2026 Oriental News Conference in Lagos, Dr. Aliyu, represented by Gboyega Ayoade, Executive Director of Corporate Services, asserted that energy policy must function as industrial policy, prioritising local participation over expatriate dominance. “As renewable energy deployment grows, we must also grow local capacity for assembly, manufacturing, installation, operation, maintenance, recycling and skills development,” he stated. This aligns with the ‘Nigeria First’ policy, positioning clean energy as a vehicle for local content, job creation, and industrial value capture.
The REA MD stressed that every major renewable energy programme should be evaluated not just on electricity supply, but on the domestic capacity it builds. Key questions include job creation for Nigerian engineers and technicians, utilisation of local installers, demand for local assembly, support for Nigerian firms, strengthening of supply chains, and improvements in skills and technology transfer. “This is how clean energy becomes an industrial policy tool,” Dr. Aliyu emphasised.
The REA is actively repositioning its programmes to leverage clean energy as a strategic industrial policy instrument. By creating predictable demand through large-scale deployment, the agency aims to instil confidence in manufacturers, thereby generating jobs, expanding incomes, and strengthening local supply chains to reduce costs. Anchor markets such as public sector solarisation, mini-grids, agricultural energy hubs, and institutional electrification are being identified to foster domestic renewable manufacturing.
Beyond technical limitations, the REA identified weak bankability structures as a primary impediment to solar project advancement. Capital inflow is contingent on well-prepared projects, clear risk allocation, credible revenue streams, and trusted institutions. To address this, the REA is collaborating with development partners, financial institutions, and private developers to enhance project preparation and financing frameworks through performance-based grants, blended finance, demand aggregation, and green finance platforms.
Nigeria’s decarbonisation strategy, according to Dr. Aliyu, must transcend mere emissions targets to encompass a broader economic framework integrating energy, finance, industry, and investment. Decarbonisation should be viewed as an opportunity for competitiveness, industrial renewal, energy security, climate resilience, and inclusive growth, acknowledging the nation’s economic structure, the role of oil and gas, and the imperative to expand electricity access.
Achieving this requires coordinated, system-wide reforms and an integrated regulatory architecture connecting energy, finance, environment, industry, and investment. Regulations must foster innovation while protecting consumers and ensuring market discipline. For the extractive industry, clear and coordinated regulations on emissions management, carbon capture, and environmental reporting are crucial. Similarly, power sector regulations governing mini-grids, embedded generation, and distributed energy resources must evolve.
The REA MD cautioned that Nigeria’s decarbonisation pathway must reflect its developmental realities, including a growing population, expanding energy demand, and infrastructure deficits. The challenge is not solely emissions reduction, but simultaneously expanding energy access, growing the economy, and industrialising. Decentralised renewable energy solutions are critical to this balance, demonstrating that clean energy can improve livelihoods, lower production costs, and serve underserved communities, thereby acting as an economic development strategy.
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