An Overview of the Nigerian Power Sector, the Challenges of its National Grid and Off-Grid Development as a Proposed Solution

In Nigeria, about half of the population living in the rural areas have little or no access to electricity. The Federal Government of Nigeria has embarked on many ambitious electricity sector reforms over the past decade. However, this has not improved electricity access, in large part due to the country's crippled transmission infrastructure. Nigeria can increase its electrification rate through the provision of off-grid energy services to rural households and businesses using the country's abundant renewable energy resource potential. This paper provides an overview of the Nigerian power sector and its challenges, with a specific focus on the transmission system. It analyses the current electrification rates in the different geopolitical zones of Nigeria and proposes the application of off-grid solar PV in the North of Nigeria as the quickest way to increase electricity access in the country. Likewise, this paper then examines relative successes of rural electrification programs in Kenya, Peru and Chile and applies the lessons learnt from these countries to provide recommendations to accelerate the pace of rural electrification through off-grid development.