Electrification in rural areas in Niger may improve somewhat in the coming months. The Moroccan Water Electricity Authority (Onee) has decided to cooperate with the Nigerian Agency for the Promotion of Electrification in Rural Areas (Anper). Both parties wish to focus their efforts to support electricity coverage in Niger’s villages. A cooperation agreement was concluded to this effect on October 7, 2019, in Rabah, between the Director General of Onee, Abderrahim El Hafidi, and that of the Nigerian Agency, Salouhou Hamidine. This agreement is the result of cooperation between the two countries and the link between Onee and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), particularly with regard to the implementation of the Joint Initiative to Support Rural Electrification in Sub-Saharan Africa. “Through this project, Onee is strengthening its cooperation in the electricity sector with sub-Saharan African countries,” says Onee.
Thanks to this partnership, mini grids powered by solar power plants will be installed in some 30 villages in Niger. This will make it easier to connect nearly 17,500 households and 1,500 public and private activities in the country.
Onee has shown leadership and is now the leading operator in the implementation of rural electrification projects in Senegal, where it has already won two concession contracts over 25 years in a territory that covers 49,000 km2. Onee is leading similar projects in Mali, Chad and The Gambia.
In Niger, the rate of access to electricity is only about 12%. Yet the country has two of the sunniest areas on the planet, according to the NASA.
Luchelle Feukeng