Failures in Nigeria's Electricity Sector Privatization: Issues for Urgent Legislative Measures.
Working Paper
The privatisation of Nigeria's electricity sector, initiated to enhance service delivery, infrastructure, and efficiency, has not achieved its intended objectives. Communities and individuals continue to bear the financial burden of infrastructure repairs and acquisitions, while electricity distribution companies (DisCos) provide substandard services and persist with estimated billing practices. The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), mandated to oversee the sector, has exhibited weak enforcement, exacerbating these challenges. This brief took a cursory look at the failure of the sector and made the following recommendations that the legislature: 1. Enact law requiring DisCos to achieve 100% metering of customers within a specified timeframe, eliminating estimated billing practices; 2. Legislate that DisCos are solely responsible for the provision and maintenance of electricity infrastructure, prohibiting the transfer of these financial burdens to communities or state governments; 3. Amend existing laws to grant NERC enhanced authority to enforce compliance, impose sanctions, and ensure DisCos adhere to their contractual obligations; etc.