Lighting Africa Program Kicks Off in Nigeria

The Lighting Africa program, a joint initiative of IFC and the World Bank, was today launched in Nigeria where it will help increase access to affordable, clean and safer lighting for more than 30 percent of Nigeria’s population who live in rural areas, and have low incomes and no access to grid electricity.
Lighting Africa mobilizes the private sector to build and develop markets that enable access to clean, affordable, quality lighting products by fostering partnerships among local and global manufacturers and creating new channels through local distribution companies that will help build robust supply chains for off-grid lighting products.
Itotia Njagi, Program Manager for Lighting Africa program said, “Lighting Africa is helping to build a market to bring off-grid lighting and energy services across Africa by establishing quality standards, investing in consumer education, creating a favorable investment climate, and supporting innovative business models. As we foster these partnerships among all parties in the industry, various opportunities would be explored and our goal of inclusive electrification would be achieved in Nigeria.”
The expansion of the Lighting Africa program to Nigeria supports the World Bank Group’s Energy Business Plan. Under the Energy Business Plan, each World Bank Group institution will leverage its competencies and products to provide solutions to projects that encourage their viability and contribute to the sustainability of Nigeria’s power sector to underpin the government’s ambitious privatization and reform program.
Eme Essien Lore, IFC Country Manager for Nigeria said, “Part of the World Bank Group’s targeted interventions in the power sector includes off-grid solutions that make access to power more inclusive. These solutions, mostly solar powered, will reduce the hazards of using fuel based energy resources, improve the climate and accelerate development in Nigeria.”
The Lighting Africa program in Nigeria aims to help 5 million people not connected to the electricity grid access clean energy by 2017. This is expected to avert 100,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, associated with current fuel-based lighting technologies.
Lighting Africa is a key component of the Global Lighting and Energy Access Partnership (Global LEAP), an initiative of the Clean Energy Ministerial. The Clean Energy Ministerial is a global forum where best practices are shared, and policies and programs encouraging and facilitating transition to a clean global energy economy are promoted.
The Lighting Africa program was launched in 2007, with pilot programs in Ghana and Kenya, and is now operational in 10 additional countries including Nigeria. The program, which has enabled more than 28.5 million people across Africa access clean, affordable lighting, has also inspired programs in Bangladesh, India, and Papua New Guinea.