The Voice of Nigeria (VON) has offered its platform to the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) to showcase and narrate its positive impact to communities across the country.
The Director-General of VON, Malam-Jibrin Baba Ndace, gave the offer on Tuesday in Abuja, when he led his management team to a courtesy visit on the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of REA, Malam Abba Aliyu.
Ndace said for the country to move forward, stakeholders must work collectively, adding that as a public sector concern, VON was there to help amplify what others were doing.
“As public sector concern, we are here to amplify what you do, because we are in the age of noise, misinformation, disinformation and fake news.
“It is time for institutions to be deliberate and intentional in telling their own stories and there is no better place to do that and amplify them than in VON.
“Since my assumption of duty on Oct. 23, 2023, I have been deliberate and intentional in building on all the legacies of the founding fathers of VON to the last.
“VON broadcasts in eight languages – four local which includes Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo and Fulfulde and also in four foreign languages of English, French, Arabic and Swahili.
“I have been in talks with Chinese and Indonesian Governments to start broadcast in Madarin and other languages,” he explained.
The VON boss also disclosed that he was working with the team to create positive narrative about Nigeria, Nigerians, Africa and Africans, and also about institutions so as to close the gap about misinformation and disinformation.
He added that VON was committed to ensuring that all public institutions, including REA, were given the platform to tell their stories.
“So, we have a responsibility to also amplify the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu in a truthful and believable manner to Nigerians, no pretence, no lie.
“If REA has done something, we will tell the world and these are things that are verifiable, and people can see, even if not complete,” he further said.
Responding, Aliyu appreciated the management of VON for the offer, adding that he could not think of any platform that had given REA such kind of opportunity to leverage on.
“I want to take your offer and to tell you that I am an ‘Oliver Twist’. I will take the offer and ask for more till we deliver on our mandate. I greatly appreciate your offer,” he said.
According to the REA boss, the issue of electricity is one of the most challenging in the country.
“In Nigeria at this moment, we have over 85 million Nigerians without electricity, and most of them reside in the areas where it will be very expensive to extend the national grid to.
“This is because they live in communities that are sparsely populated, or in rural areas where economic activities are not viable and significant.
“So, moving or extending the grid to these areas may not be economically viable.
“Therefore, the best alternative is by providing them with distributed generation resource around these communities.
“That is what REA has been doing to deliver on its mandate; we provide mini-grid to particular communities, solar home system to areas where mini-grid are not viable and also grid extension to where it is needed.”
He disclosed that the agency also partnered with international organisations, adding that the World Bank Group recently approved addition $750 million for REA’s intervention through a programme called ‘Distribution Access through Renewable Energy Scale Up.
“The World Bank Group could not have approved such funding without a track record.
“Before then, we implemented so many projects funded by African Development Bank and World Bank, and because of that success, we got this additional funding.”(NAN)
