Mshelbila: Over 600m People Lack Access to Electricity in Africa

• Says Nigeria stands at forefront of Africa’s gas story

Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt

The Secretary General of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF), Mr Philip Mshelbila has reiterated that over 600million people lack access to electricity in Africa, stressing that a bigger number lack access to clean cooking.

Mshelbila stated this in his remarks at the 2026 Nigeria International Energy Summit, held at the State House, Abuja, yesterday.

Speaking, Mshelbila who is the immediate past Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) said GECF analysis indicates that Africa’s total energy consumption will triple by 2050 to place the continent on a genuine path out of energy poverty.

Stressing that the continent’s energy consumption per capita is barely one-third of the global average, Mshelbila said “While more than 600 million Africans still lack access to electricity, GCF analysis indicates that Africa’s total energy consumption must at least triple by 2050 to place the continent on a genuine path out of energy poverty.”

“This requires a structural transformation. Natural gas is central to this transformation, whether it is converted into electricity, whether it is used for fertilizer production to strengthen food security, whether it is scaling up LPG production in order to provide clean cooking. Whatever it is, we must deploy the resources that we have been blessed with in order to transform our national economy and the lives of our people,” he added.

He challenged the stakeholders at the summit that if in their long-term planning they have not factored in the 400 million Nigerians that will be in this country in another 25 years, they have to go back to the drawing board.

“ And if your business or activity covers Africa, and you are not thinking about the 2.5 billion, you need to go back to the drawing board. Because all of us are responsible not just to meet the needs of today, but to ensure that the population of tomorrow, that their needs are also met.

“And so, as a nation, we have to think about how we are going to provide healthcare for 400 million people, education, and not just education as we’ve always done it, because the skill sets that will be needed will be completely different, “ he said.

Noting that natural gas has demonstrated remarkable resilience as a critical cornerstone of the current and future energy mix, even amid recent crises, Mshelbila said the crises have shown what the importance of natural gas is.

“When we think about the developments with regards to the energy mix in general, you will find that over the long term, GECF analysis shows that global primary energy demand will rise by nearly 20 per cent by 2050, driven by strong economic growth and the population increase.

“But meeting this demand securely, affordably, and sustainably is one of the significant challenges of this century and of leaders like ourselves. Natural gas stands at the centre of this challenge as the cleanest hydrocarbon. Its share of global primary energy is expected to rise from about 23 per cent today to about 26 per cent by 2050,” he stated.

Commending the recent improvement in the energy sector of the country, the GECF secretary general said “Nigeria stands at the forefront of Africa’s gas story. You cannot tell the African gas story without Nigeria, and there’s a lot that is happening and unfolding.”