Energy

Nigeria cut off electricity supply to Niger Republic

Published

3 years ago

on

August 2, 2023

By

Olusegun Odunewu

The Nigerian Government has cut off power supplies to the Niger Republic.

This is coming days after a military junta ousted Niger’s elected president, Mohamed Bazoum.

Niger’s electricity company, Nigelec, noted on Wednesday that the development followed an emergency meeting by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), where sanctions, including freezing utility services, were imposed on the Niger Republic over its coup, Daily Trust reports.

READ ALSO: Tension rises in Niger as West evacuate citizens, B’Faso, Mali align for joint forces

BBC reported that the cities of Maradi, Zinder and Niamey had power for about an hour before it was switched off for up to five hours.

Power outages are unusual in Niger, which normally has regular and reliable supplies.

Niger Republic depends on Nigeria for 70 percent of its electricity supply generated from the Kainji Dam.

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Vote-buying remains a major concern One of the strongest warnings from Osun was the continued presence of vote-buying and voter inducement. Yiaga Africa said the results declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were consistent with its independent statistical projections, but cautioned that this did not remove concerns about the integrity of voters' choices amid reports of vote-buying and inducement. The concern is particularly significant ahead of 2027, when political competition will take place nationwide and involve presidential, National Assembly and state-level contests. The International Republican Institute (IRI), following a pre-election assessment mission conducted in August, identified monetised political competition, election-related violence, insecurity and declining public confidence in INEC among the structural challenges facing the 2027 elections. 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The institute urged security agencies to identify high-risk areas early and develop location-specific plans to prevent intimidation, disruption and attacks on electoral participants. Osun offers lessons ahead of 2027 Despite the challenges, observers say the Osun election also provides evidence that improvements in election administration can produce positive results. Yiaga Africa's assessment found that INEC and security agencies largely passed the test of conducting the election, while its independent verification indicated that the official results accurately reflected the ballots counted at polling units. The challenge ahead is to build on those gains while addressing the weaknesses exposed during the election. For INEC, that means improving BVAS reliability, strengthening result-transmission and collation procedures and maintaining clear communication with voters and political parties. 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