Enugu community gets electricity after 18 years of blackout

Joy enveloped Uhuafor Nomeh community in Nkanu East Local Council of Enugu State, on Friday, as the Federal Government of Nigeria, through the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), lightened it up with construction of a solar hybrid mini-grid of 100 kilowatt peak (kWp).

The government said the project would improve the socio-economic conditions of the people in the community, as well as three other neighbouring communities, which have lived without electricity for over 18 years.

It was completed under the Rural Electrification Fund – Call 2 programme of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA).

Commissioning the project, Governor Peter Mbah, who was represented by his Special Adviser on Power, Joe Aneke, commended the agency for its unwavering commitment to bringing sustainable energy solutions to rural communities across the country.

He said the electricity project in Nomeh would bring lasting solutions to the problems of lack of electricity in rural communities.

The governor noted that the project aligned with his agenda to foster innovation, improve rural infrastructure, and create a green, energy-sufficient state.

“Let me thank the Rural Electrification Agency for its collaboration, the dedicated engineers and technicians for their expertise, and, most importantly, the people of Nomeh for your patience and belief in this project as the first mini-grid solar power plant is commissioned in Nomeh,” he said.

He urged the community to take full advantage of the project and care for the shared asset, as it is their resource for growth and betterment, saying, “this facility must be protected to ensure it serves the community reliably and sustainably while the network system is extended to connect other households and villages in Nomeh”.

Mbah disclosed his administration’s readiness to work with the Rural Electrification Agency to developing other projects proposed for the State and looked forward to engaging with the agency in that regard.

The REA Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Abba Abubakar Aliyu, represented by the Executive Director, Rural Electrification Fund, Doris Uboh, stated that the project is one of the many testaments of the work that the federal government does through REA, connecting last-mile communities to clean, sustainable energy sources and facilitating the growth of socioeconomic systems through productive use.

Aliyu said that President Bola Tinubu prioritised their welfare and that of rural communities across the country and would continue working to ensure no community was left behind.

“This electrification will help the people to navigate and if you manage this thing well, before you know it, the business activities happening in the cities will begin to bubble here.

“Promise yourself that you will take care of this mini grid. If you do it, it can grow to even one megawatt. This will easily encourage future expansion to other nearby communities”, he said.

The traditional ruler of the community, Igwe I. O. Mbah, while expressing his gratitude to the Federal Government and the implementers of the project for finding the community worthy to provide this kind of infrastructure which will improve their livelihoods, noted that the community had been without electricity for over 18 years.
He said: “We have been in celebratory mood since this project was completed. This is because since 2006 till date, we haven’t seen electricity in Nomeh. But, we can now drink cold water in our community, while our children who used to burn the proverbial midnight candle, are now using electric bulbs to study.

“So, this day has brought good tiding to all of us in Nomeh and I want to assure the federal government of our commitment to ensure the safety and security of this infrastructure”.