Women engineers, German agency mull solution to energy crisis in Nigeria
By Ikechukwu Odu
NSUKKA —The Association of Professional Women Engineers in Nigeria, APWEN, Nsukka chapter, and a leading German agency for international co-operation services, GIZ, have entered into collaboration to end energy crisis in Nigeria through renewable energy.
The two groups believe that Nigeria, with a population of approximately 200 million people, has inadequate transmission network of its conventional energy, leaving the country power-starved.
In his paper presentation yesterday at the Faculty of Engineering, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, UNN, during a seminar tagged : Energy Transition Plan-Opportunities and Implementation Challenges in Nigeria, the Dean of the Faculty, Prof. Emenike Ejiogu, said there is need to transit to earth-friendly energy economy in Nigeria.
He hinged the need for the transition on environmental degradation and continuous increase in cost of conventional energy sources in Nigeria.
While making a case for bioenergy, which is energy generated from biological sources such as biomass and animal wastes, he said that the technologies are easier to domesticate.
He further said that to overcome the energy problem in Nigeria, focus should be on achievable renewable energy goals, adding that agro-wastes from the rural and farming communities can be used for clean energy transition.
While addressing newsmen, the Vice Chairman, Nigeria Society Engineers, Nsukka chapter, Dr. Uche Ogbuefi, said the seminar was to create awareness for governments, companies and individuals to start investing in hydrogen energy.
Dr. Ogbuefi, who is also the Vice Chairman, Association of Professional Women Engineers in Nigeria, Nsukka chapter, equally said that the collaboration with GIZ was to explore renewable energy sources in Nigeria in order to reduce overdependence on the conventional national grid.
She equally enjoined the Federal Government to sponsor researchers on renewable energy and to initiate a policy to encourage its use in Nigeria.
Also, a lecturer in the Department of Agricultural and Bioresources Engineering, UNN, Nneoma Aneke, said there are institutional, technological and financial challenges hampering smooth transition from conventional to renewable energy in Nigeria.
Aneke, who is also the Technical Secretary of APWEN, in Nsukka further said that the collaboration with the German agency would help to take renewable energy to the grassroot where energy is mostly lacking.
While addressing newsmen, the Associate Dean, Faculty of Engineering, UNN, Associate Professor Sunday Ezeoha, said there are opportunities for researchers, entrepreneurs and job seekers in the renewable energy value chain.
He said that a research group in UNN led by Prof. Ejiogu, has already fabricated a gasification plant which uses waste to generate energy, adding that APWEN and GIZ would consolidate on it to explore other renewable energy sources which would address power crisis in Nigeria.
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Photo: Members of APWEN shortly after the seminar at UNN yesterday.
