The result of Federal Government's over $10 billion investment, according to Shonekan, is disappointing to over 140 million people, who are denied efficient access to electricity.
Delivering a paper at the Third Power Solution Conference in Lagos, the Chairman of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), an agency saddled with getting Public Private Partnerships for Nigeria's infrastructural development, cautioned all ministries that have something to do with award of contracts for PPP to adhere strictly to provisions of his commission.
He said: "Over the past 10 years, the Federal Government has made significant investments in the power sector well in excess of $10 billion, in an effort to make up for the dearth of such investments in the preceding two decades. But as we all now know, the result has been clearly disappointing."
"This disappointment", he continued, "is not only due to the poor planning and sequencing of government's investments that was/is needed to bridge the gap between the available capacity and what is needed to meet even the current level of demand for power.
"With a population of over 150 million people and access to electricity of just about 40 per cent (according to the Nigerian Energy Commission), a situation which leaves over 90 million Nigerians without access, the gap that has to be closed is clearly enormous and well beyond the capacity of the treasury.
"The resource gap becomes even more challenging given our national aspiration to position our country among the top 20 economies of the world by the year 2020. Our challenges can be illustrated by statistics from the World Facts Book, which showed the following electricity per capita consumption figures:
U.S. (rank one) 12,672 kWh, Russia (four)-6,969kWh, Egypt (28) - 1052kWh, Algeria (60) - 957kWh, Nigeria (71)-125kWh."
He said the current policy direction of the Yar'Adua administration to encourage the participation of the private sector in the provision of this vital public infrastructure through Public Private Partnerships (PPP) is a most welcome development, adding that that PPPs "have a proven track records elsewhere of providing the requisite financing as well as management capacity to regenerate and expand national infrastructure.
"I believe, in time, the PPP option will prove to be the mainstream opportunity for addressing the growth and development. This is why I consider the establishment of the infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) by the President a very timely and auspicious decision and my being invited to chair it, a great privilege and most welcome responsibility, albeit a very daunting one."
According to the former Head of the defunct Interim Government, the ICRC was inaugurated in November last year by the President under the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission 2005 to regulate, monitor and supervise contractual arrangement for the participation of the private sector in financing the construction, development, operation or maintenance of infrastructure or development of projects of the Federal Government.
"Finally, we must all commit to addressing the challenges of corruption which, in my view, is the one critical factor that has impeded our country's economic progress and undermined our capacity to actualise our enormous potential. If we are to create a PPP market that would be internationally competitive and that can attract internationally reputable investors, we must ensure that our processes are transparent and internationally competitive and all players involved in any transactions follow due process," he said.
Source: Daily Independent
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