The Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Mr. Khalil Suleiman Halilu, is set to detail the agency’s plans and strategies for rural electrification in Nigeria using homegrown technologies.
The 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference, though officially opened today, November 30, 2023, also known as Conference of the Parties (COP28), holding at Expo City, Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), will see Mr. Halilu on December 3rd, 2023, deliver opening remarks and also participate at a panel session titled ‘Advancing Sustainable Rural Electrification through Homegrown Technologies’.
The COP28, also referred to as the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC), will be held from November 30 to December 12, 2023, and is intended for governments to agree on policies to limit global temperature rises and adapt to impacts associated with climate change.
The event will be graced by Presidents and Heads of State, government officials, business leaders, investors, development partners, civil society organizations, academics, and the media.
Halilu, NASENI’s EVC/CEO, during the panel session, to be moderated by Al Amin Idris, CEO of Interface Africa, will speak alongside Gunther Beger, Managing Director of the Directorate for SDG Innovation and Economic Transformation, UNIDO; Gov. Mohammed Umar Bago, Governor of Niger State, Nigeria; and Miklós Veszprémi, Climate & Sustainability Expert Consultant at Boston Consulting Group (BCG).
The NASENI boss is expected to discuss the roles that NASENI currently plays back home to promote the development and adoption of homegrown technologies for rural electrification in Nigeria, as well as other initiatives undertaken to advance sustainable rural electrification in the country.
Since his assumption of office in September 2023, Mr. Halilu has made sustainable rural electrification via renewable energies one of his key priorities, having embarked on partnership commitments with government agencies and companies such as the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) and Family Homes Funds Limited (FHFL) to ensure rural communities are provided with affordable renewable energy solutions and also homes. This is being accomplished through the provision of funds toward research and development, facilitating technology transfer, and providing support for the commercialization of innovative solutions.
In September, NASENI and REA agreed to work together to deploy NASENI solar resources and other renewable energy technologies to increase electricity supply to Nigeria’s rural areas. Also in November, Family Homes Funds Limited signed an MoU with the agency to promote modern and sustainable building designs for affordable housing across Nigeria. According to NASENI’s EVC during the MoU signing event with FHFL, “the Agency will contribute toward reducing the cost of building materials so that Nigerians can build and own homes and to deploy affordable solar energy solutions.”
Family Homes Funds Ltd. is a limited liability company owned by the federal government of Nigeria and represented by the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA).
