Fayose assumes REA board chair, vows to deliver unprecedented results

Former Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose, has been inaugurated as Chairman of the Governing Board of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), with a pledge to mobilise the political will and resources required to expand electricity access across underserved communities.

Fayose was inaugurated alongside other members of the REA Governing Board on Friday by the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, in Abuja.

Also inaugurated were Alhaji Ahmadu Abubakar, Ilyasu Makinta and three other members and non-executive directors, while Abba Aliyu assumed office as the Managing Director of the agency.

Speaking after his inauguration, Fayose thanked President Bola Tinubu for the confidence reposed in him and other members of the board.

He said his immediate priority would be to reposition the agency and ensure that its programmes deliver tangible improvements in electricity access, particularly at the grassroots.

Fayose pledged to use his position to provide the political support required to attract funding for both the short- and long-term programmes of the agency.

“Work has started in earnest; we are reaching out very fast and appealing to people to ensure the work is done,” he said.

The former governor assured Nigerians that the new board would work to justify the confidence placed in it by the President.

“I want to use this window to assure Nigerians that your expectation about my appointment and my colleagues will not be dashed.

“We will give our best to achieve the renewed hope of President Tinubu for the country to be better for us all,” he added.

Fayose noted that many of the challenges in Nigeria’s power sector were concentrated at the grassroots, stressing that the board’s responsibility extended beyond simply increasing electricity supply.

He said the agency must also ensure that the growing Nigerian population benefits from improved access to energy.

According to him, expanding electricity access would have a direct impact on communities and improve economic opportunities for ordinary Nigerians.

“We are not just providing electricity; we are looking at the population of the country who need to feel the impact of the energy,” he said.

The new REA chairman said the agency would work towards ensuring that communities experience tangible benefits from its interventions.

Also speaking, REA Managing Director, Abba Aliyu, thanked President Tinubu for the opportunity to serve and pledged to work with the board to expand electricity access.

Aliyu said the agency would continue its efforts to provide power to both served and underserved communities across the country.

Earlier, Tegbe said Nigeria’s electricity sector was undergoing a shift from simply measuring power generation in kilowatts and megawatts to assessing how many communities and people were actually being powered.

He described REA as a strategic institution within Nigeria’s power sector, saying its mandate went beyond connecting communities to electricity.

“We are moving from just counting kilowatts and megawatts to how many communities and people were powered in the country,” the minister said.

Tegbe said every mini-grid project, solar home system and electrification project represented an investment in human capital, economic inclusion and national development.

He said the electrification of markets, schools, primary healthcare centres, farms and productive businesses could unlock economic opportunities and improve livelihoods.

“REA is fundamentally an institution for expanding opportunity,” he said.

The minister said the agency’s role had become increasingly important as the Federal Government continued implementing the Electricity Act and deepening reforms across the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry.

He described REA as a bridge between national electricity policy and grassroots development, noting that the agency was expected to ensure that the benefits of power sector reforms reached communities beyond major urban centres.

“Not only in our major cities but also in the remotest communities across the federation,” Tegbe said.

According to him, the constitution of the new board demonstrates President Tinubu’s commitment to strengthening governance and accountability across government institutions.

Tegbe charged the board members to provide effective strategic oversight, promote transparency and innovation, and ensure that public resources entrusted to the agency are used efficiently.

He also urged them to build productive partnerships with development organisations and private-sector investors to accelerate rural electrification.

The minister said the board had assumed office at a critical stage in the country’s power sector reforms and must focus on delivering measurable results.

He urged the members to ensure that every decision taken by the board reflects the needs of ordinary Nigerians.

“Most importantly, I encourage you to continually ask one fundamental question whenever decisions come before the board: ‘How does this improve the lives and livelihoods of ordinary Nigerians?’”

Tegbe expressed confidence that if the board maintained that principle as its guide, REA would continue to exceed expectations and make a measurable difference in electricity access across Nigeria.