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Nigeria’s Vice President Kashim Shettima urged state governments on Wednesday to stop waiting for federal solutions to local power problems and to establish their own electricity markets under the Electricity Act 2023.
Speaking at a stakeholders’ workshop in Abuja, Shettima said the country’s industrial ambitions would remain constrained without reliable power.
His speech was delivered by Deputy Chief of Staff Ibrahim Hadejia.
“The Act empowers States to develop and regulate intrastate electricity markets within the applicable constitutional and statutory framework,” Shettima said, adding that the country’s diversity demanded such decentralisation.
“Electricity supply must become a shared responsibility, pursued with innovation and accountability across the Federation. Our States must shed the habit of waiting for Abuja to provide every answer.”
He pointed to regional energy endowments, citing solar potential in the north, gas resources in the Niger Delta, and hydroelectric opportunities in Niger and Kebbi, urging states to attract investment.
Shettima warned that legislation alone would not improve supply and called on states without regulators to act promptly.
“Legislation cannot implement itself,” he said, urging the creation of technically competent regulatory bodies.
He proposed a voluntary peer review framework involving the national regulator, the power ministry, the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and state regulators to share expertise and track progress.
The vice president said private capital was essential. “Transparent licensing, predictable regulation, commercially viable markets, investment safeguards and credible dispute resolution will earn investors’ confidence,” he said.
He also called for stronger consumer protection against arbitrary billing and poor service. “The final verdict on this law will be delivered wherever a Nigerian reaches for a switch,” he said.
President Bola Tinubu signed the Electricity Act in June 2023, allowing states to license generation, transmission and distribution within their borders. The national regulator has so far issued regulatory transfers to 17 states.
