as UK, Lagos spend £30m on solar projects
The Minister of State for Africa Grant Shapps, British High Commissioner, Paul Arkwright, along with some reputable members of the British High Commission Abuja and British Deputy High Commission Lagos, yesterday, visited the Epe Public Health Centre, one of the 11 funded health clinics fully powered by solar.
Speaking at the visit, Shapps called for international backing of solar energy projects to speed up access to electricity across the African continent.
“Many Nigerians don’t have access to power at all and for others that do, blackouts and costly generators are a daily reality. So, we must harness this opportunity and get more people into this energy market. I plan to bring together, African politicians, investors and solar experts in London to kick start the Energy Africa campaign to bring power to millions of people,” he said.
On his part, Paul Arkwright said “we are working very closely with the Department of International Development to encourage Nigerian government to do more with regards to solar development in the country.”
Registering 60,000 antenatal patients every year, the Epe Health Centre only had two hours of electricity every day before the panels were installed last year.
Tinyan Ogiehor, project planning manager, Solar Nigeria, said: “Solar Nigeria and the Lagos Electricity board were glad to oversee and implement this project because we saw that the lack of electricity was severely limiting their ability to treat patients.
“Drugs could not be safely stored in refrigerators, the laboratory stopped and births at night had to rely on candles or kerosene lamps, increasing the risk of complications. Before solar, the clinic registered only about three or four births monthly but after being powered by solar, receiving 24 hours constant electricity, the clinic now registers 29 or more births monthly with no complications.”
The installation of a 240 x 300 watts solar panels and batteries in the clinic ensures a regular and completely reliable energy supply throughout the day and night.
The technician in charge of maintenance, Ggbenga Farombi, said; “Since the complete installation of the solar systems in February I, we have not witnessed any error. I only come to clean and ensure that all the fixtures and equipments are dust free.”
In addition to the 11 health centres, the British government and Lagos State are currently funding 172 secondary schools across the state and are planning to embark on major solar energy projects in Kano and Kaduna shortly to provide reliable and instant access to vital electricity.
According to Keith Hammond, infrastructure adviser, Economic Growth Team, Department for International Development, the overall project is costing the Lagos State and UK government a shared total of 30 million pounds.
Shapps told BusinessDay that apart from the solar revolution, which has started with the help of funding by the two governments, Nigerians need to move on with technology and start paying for their electricity through mobile pay. “People in the rural areas of Tanzania have started using mobile money even with their simple mobile phones and have realized that the pay as you go solar system is cheaper than buying kerosene or generator fuel.”
“I believe that this process would work even better in Nigeria with the implementation of cashless policy,” he added.
At next week’s Energy Africa launch Shapps will launch what DFID describes as an energy revolution across Africa.
