The federal and state governments have been enjoined to put in place legislative and regulatory frameworks that would encourage the usage of renewable energy Nigeria.
Kayode Boladale, head, Operations Integrity of Oando Energy Resources, made this call at the LiveWell Initiative, LWI, 2015 Annual Multi-sectoral Grand Health Bazaar (GHB2015) in Lagos. He said that the use of renewable energy would help alleviate poverty and enhance technological capacity and economic development of developing countries.
According to him, environmentally sound technology may also prevent people in developing countries from destroying the basis of their life-support through over-exploitation of natural resources. According to him, renewable energy provides an enormous opportunity to drastically reduce Green House Gas emissions, pursue economic growth and enhance energy security, thereby, advancing sustainable development.
“It is necessary to develop a communication and awareness action plan to raise awareness on the benefits of using renewable energy and energy efficiency against other forms. Therefore, governments have a duty to create the enabling environment through a government–private collaboration in developing infrastructure required to drive renewable energy,” he said.
He noted that renewable energy and energy efficiency are widely recognised as the most promising alternatives for reducing fossil energy consumption, mitigating climate change, and advancing the goal of energy sustainability. “Renewable energy propels a green economy revolution and captures interrelationship between the environment, the economy, and human well-being in the effort to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
“It reduces drastically the consumption of resources like coal, fossil fuel and others that has many harmful environmental effects: devastating lands, causing air and water pollution that are toxic to human health and the environment. Use of Renewable energy sources enables people to cook without suffering from wood-smoke pollution. It also reduces CO2 emissions by removing the need for highly polluting diesel generators,” he said.
By Dike Onwuamaeze
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