Business
W’African Countries Move To Steady Power Supply
Representatives of
West African countries will next week converge on Lagos for a workable blueprint that will ensure steady power supply in Nigeria and other West African countries, the organisers have said.
Mr Oti Ukpai, Chief Executive Officer of Flintpostures, made the disclosure on Saturday at a Roundtable with journalists to announce the 2nd West Africa Power Summit (WAPS) in Lagos.
The theme of the summit is “Developing Sustainable Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution Networks for West Africa’’.
Ukpai said the summit would bring together experts and stakeholders in the power sector from Ghana, Republic of Benin, Nigeria and other West African countries.
“Power supply in Nigeria and other West African countries is by the day becoming unencouraging to us as individuals, private and public organisations.
“We really want to see development in Nigeria and other West African countries, and the best way to do this is to come together in ensuring linked steady power supply in the sub-region.
“This summit will bring together governments, private investors, businesses and citizens from the region.
“The aim is to place our region on a sustainable and prosperous path by removing obstacles that have continued to impede steady power supply in our countries,’’ he said.
Ukpai said that speakers and discussants were selected to deliberate on the urgent need for the region to focus on rural electrification and alternative and renewable energy sources.
He expressed optimism that the provision and access to steady power supply would not only promote socioeconomic development, but would easily link the region with the rest of the world.
The Flintpostures chief said the summit was jointly being organised by Power for All, Council for Renewable Energy, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and other energy organisations.
He said that his organisation, Flintpostures, was committed to creating the right platforms for connecting leaders, investors and policy makers for the development of African countries.
Credit to Nigeria’s private sector rose to N83.26 trillion in June 2026 from N81.04 trillion in May, signifying a positive balance of N2.22 trillion month-on-month.
Year-on-year, the figure represents a nine per cent increase compared with the N76.13 trillion recorded in June 2025. The latest figures come as the CBN continues to balance efforts to control inflation with the need to support economic growth and expand credit to businesses.
The CBN data shows that credit to Nigeria’s private sector increased by approximately 2.74 per cent month-on-month between May and June 2026. Also, the CBN data noted that credit to the government fell slightly to N40.03 trillion from N40.38 trillion. Other assets, net, dropped to N10.76 trillion from N12.63 trillion.
The credit surge signifies sustained growth in lending to businesses and other private-sector borrowers during the month. The rise in private sector credit was recorded alongside an increase in net domestic credit, despite declines in credit to government and other assets.
Further analysis of the report says that compared with June 2025, private sector credit rose by about N7.13 trillion yea-on-year but net domestic credit increased by approximately N1.87 trillion during the month.
The CBN’s relatively tight monetary policy stance notwithstanding, more banks still loaded funds to the private sector within the period. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) held its 306th meeting on July 20 and 21.
The Committee reviewed recent developments in the global and domestic economies, assessed emerging risks to the outlook and considered their implications for monetary policy and retained all rates.
The Committee decided to retain the Monetary Policy Rate at 26.5 per cent; the Standing Facilities Corridor around the MPR at +50/-450 basis points and retain the Cash Reserve Requirement (CRR) for Deposit Money Banks at 45.00 per cent, Merchant Banks at 16.00 per cent, and non-TSA public sector deposits at 75.00 per cent.
The MPC decision means that credit extension in the private sector will likely continue to rise because of rising confidence in the sector and calls by stakeholders for banks to invest in the private scetor instead of government securities.
