Stakeholders want communities, states involved in energy transition plan
Port Harcourt -- The Federal Government has been urged to include communities, local and state governments in its energy transition plan, create awareness and also ensure renewable energy sources are available to the poor and lowincome earners.
This was part of the resolutions reached at the National Dialogue on Energy Transition Plan in Port Harcourt, organised by Lekeh Development Foundation, Quest for Growth and Development Foundation, Society for Women and Youth Affairs, Vote4Climate, Global Initiative for Food Security and Ecosystem Preservation, supported by 350.Org.
Speaking at the event, a resource person, Dr Gbenemene Kpae, said the government must make economic policies that will make renewable energy available to the poor and lowincome earners, to achieve net zero in 2060.
"The 2060 target on renewable energy is an expensive project, if the private sector is not involved it is going to be difficult for an average Nigerian to be able to afford renewable energy.
"If only the government is funding renewable energy projects, it will be very expensive and the ordinary citizen will not be able to afford it, for example, cooking gas.
"So the solution for transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy is for the Government to carry along the private sector by giving them incentives like tax break to invest in renewable energy, by so doing jobs will be created," he stated.
The Executive Director of Lekeh Foundation, Mr Friday Nbani, said the government's energy transition plan was a welcome development, especially for people who are suffering the direct impact of fossil fuel on the
environment, especially pollution.
However, Nbani said there was a need to examine the document to ascertain how it was favourable and workable for the Niger Delta people.
Also, the coordinator of Quest for Growth and Development
Foundation, Mr Smith Nwokocha, said energy transition should be equitable and domesticated, and warned that Nigeria may experience worse climate issues if steps were not urgently taken to move to cleaner energy.