Close to 147,000 homes and businesses in Zamfara State are set to gain access to electricity under a new federal and state push, after the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, launched the Zamfara State Electricity Policy, commissioned two solar plants and broke ground for 36 solar mini grids.
The mini grids will span nine local government areas. Tegbe spoke in Gusau alongside Governor Dauda Lawal, the Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency, Abba Aliyu, development partners, and traditional and community leaders.
He said the initiatives put the Renewed Hope Agenda into practice by “turning reform and investment into better public services, cleaner transport and more dependable electricity for homes and businesses.”
The two commissioned plants, each of 2.5MW capacity, are a 1MW mini grid with 2.4MW battery energy storage at the Ahmed Sani Yariman Bakura Specialist Hospital, and a 1.5MW plant with 3.6MW battery storage serving the Government House and its auxiliary facilities.
The hospital system will help doctors operate with greater confidence and preserve essential medicines, while the Government House plant will end its dependence on diesel-based generation.
Of the 36 mini grids, the interconnected projects in Gusau and Kaura Namoda will improve supply on the existing distribution network. The other 34 will serve communities beyond the grid’s present reach.
Also unveiled was Zamtaxi, a clean transport initiative that opens opportunities for drivers, technicians and young entrepreneurs.
Tegbe credited President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, whose assent to the Electricity Act 2023 created greater room for states and investors to participate in the power sector.
He pledged the Ministry’s support “to translate this policy into effective institutions and improved service.”
He urged host communities to protect the assets as their own and to report vandalism and theft promptly. He also congratulated Zamfara on 30 years of statehood.
The Minister commended Governor Lawal for driving and sponsoring the two commissioned mini grid projects, among other solar-powered initiatives in the state, including solar power for 15 general hospitals, 800 schools and 70 primary health care facilities.
The 36 mini grid projects form part of President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda drive to bring electricity to all Nigerians. Alongside strengthening the national grid, the Federal Government is expanding solar power and other viable sources, bringing supply closer to demand and reaching communities previously without access.
For Zamfara, that means a more resilient and diverse electricity system, and dependable power for the homes, hospitals, farms and markets that depend on it.
