Stakeholders’ Forum for Green Policies, Informal Economy, Inclusive Growth in Nigeria Debuts
Fadekemi Ajakaiye
A Stakeholders’ Forum (SF) for Green Policies, the Informal Economy and Inclusive Growth in Nigeria was launched in Lagos, recently.
During the event, which was held at the LCCI, Ikeja, participants tentatively named “The Renewable Energy Stakeholders’ Forum” (or SF for simplicity) and advocate hybrid meetings going forward.
The initiative, a product of a year-long collaboration between researchers from De Montfort University and University of Lagos, highlights the important role of stakeholders’ engagement in policymaking, policy dialogue, design and implementation. With no ministry currently focusing solely on renewable energy in Lagos, Nigeria, the creation of the SF ensures joint efforts by stakeholders can enable Lagos, and by extension Nigeria, grant primacy to renewable energy as a viable alternative source of power supply.
The forum, comprising renewable energy practitioners, users, policymakers, top academics in the Energy space and members of the public agreed that it is imperative to explore environment-friendly energy alternatives. Dr Eghosa Igudia, the Principal Investigator (PI) of the research work which culminated in the creation of the SF revealed that in 2015, 196 countries came together to sign a pact to limit global temperatures.
Dr Igudia note that as signatory to the treaty, there are huge expectations on Nigeria to deliver on the climate commitments, but this is unsupported by the currently unregulated Nigerian renewable energy space. Further, the PI pointed to the current reality of Nigeria’s high inflation, effects of the removal of petroleum subsidy and how these have contributed to the rising cost of livelihood in Nigeria. These, according to Dr Igudia were part of the findings of the surveys and interviews his research team carried out in Lagos in April 2024 across five local government areas. Reflecting further on the findings from their work, the PI reiterated the need to see the current Nigerian energy reality as an opportunity and not as ‘unfixable’ challenges. The SF therefore provides the platform for the co-creation of the much needed-solutions to the challenges, regulations and conducive environment required to fully harness the potential of renewable energy in Nigeria. The SF will bridge communication gaps among stakeholders, enhance dialogue and adopt co-created strategies that would be of benefit to all Nigerians.
A day earlier, the research team had also established a Stakeholders’ Forum (SF) for Inclusive Policy for the Informal Economy in Lagos, Nigeria. This, on its part, was the result of over a decade of deep diving research and academic collaboration between De Montfort University and Nottingham Trent University in the UK, the University of Lagos, and the Federation of Informal Workers Organization of Nigeria (FIWON), and more recently, the Lagos state ministry of transportation. The SF which aims to bridge the communication gap between operators in the informal economy (street hawkers and okada riders) and the government emanated from a research work initially supported by British Academy “Inclusive Poverty Reduction: In search of a Policy Framework to Support Individuals Operating in the Informal Economy in Lagos, Nigeria”. The project set to co-create inclusive policy, which works for all.
The newly-formed SFs therefore represent platforms where ‘policy’ meets the ‘people’ after due consultations with all stakeholders. The creation of the SFs, therefore, is to improve policies and the policymaking processes that deliver the measures governing people’s daily lives in Lagos, Nigeria. In the spirit of co-creation, cooperation and collaboration, stakeholders have spoken with one voice that the SF will lead to mutually agreeable solutions, inclusive policy and policymaking processes, that are reflective of the dynamics of the Lagos informal economy.
