Allocating subsidy savings to Renewable /solar electricity advances national climate commitments and helps achieve Nine ( 9)  major SDG’s.

Allocating subsidy savings to Renewable /solar electricity advances national climate commitments and helps achieve Nine ( 9)  major SDG’s.

The removal of subsidies remains a controversial issue worldwide, including in Nigeria. The Petroleum Industry Act provided the legal framework for Nigeria to eliminate fuel subsidies and deregulate the downstream sector. However, it is becoming an issue in the forthcoming Nigeria Presidential election as a candidate is promising  the restoration of fuel subsidy as a political issue. Policymakers evaluated several compensatory measures prior to implementing this reform, which presents both advantages and disadvantages.

Some negative effects of subsidies are that they can affect market prices, incentivize overconsumption, and aggravate greenhouse gas emissions. Removing subsidies has its  positives, including aligning prices with true costs, promoting more efficiency in energy , reducing carbon emissions, and curbing mismanagement and corruption.

Nigeria’s subsidy removal is an essential reform, but its success depends on strategically channeling it into areas that the citizenry can feel the impact. The citizens gave not felt the impact of the removal because of where the current government have channeled her attention after the subsidy removal. The removal of subsidies by the current government has been mixed. Petrol prices have risen sharply—from under ₦200 per litre to averages over₦1,200–₦1,500—driving up transport and living costs. Critics, including political figures calling for restoration of targeted subsidies ahead of 2027, argue the policy has deepened hardship. Yet the numbers tell a clearer story: the old regime was fiscally unsustainable, costing billions annually while enriching a few and encouraging smuggling and other economic sabotage. Between June 2023 and December 2025, removal mobilized about ₦15.8 trillion in additional resources for the federation which as shared among the three tiers of government..

The better path is not a return to the past. Nigeria should keep the subsidy removed and deliberately channel the fiscal space—and future savings if any —into renewable energy, especially solar power deployed in every community, among other compensation interventions. For researchers of subsidy removal, especially fuel, some interventions would have cushioned the impact or effect of subsidy removal, which the government did not do or even if they had he idea but was poorly planned and implemented. This is also under a government with a high level of distrust. Some of these policy interventions include :

S/N	Compensation measures	Implemented in Nigeria
A	unconditional and conditional cash transfers,	which they have implemented but in a shabby way, and also a social register that is not well trusted by the citizens
B	non-contributory social pensions,
C	food price bank
D	public works programs
E	Mass transit programs (Electric vehicles & CNG vehicles).	The implementation of the CNG intervention is also shabby, and the government failed to massively improve a cheap and affordable public transport scheme that would have cushioned the adverse effect of the fuel subsidy removal
F	social insurance,
G	Transport vouchers
H	Clean cooking, LPG price stabilization, and clean stoves for the vulnerable and local communities
I	Free primary health care and subsidizing malaria, child, maternal, and hypertensive drugs. The main health intervention of the government is the
J	Vocational skill development and retraining
K	Food subsidy and establishment of price-stabilizing mechanism of grains and legumes .
L	E-wallet for small farmers.
M	Price stabilization in renewable products(solar) for local communities s through favorable policy options.
N	Free basic education
O	Mechanism for household and family soft loans.  Rural employment and small and medium enterprise grants. Energy transition

There have been some gains to the fiscal regime of the government at the national and subnational level, but these gains seem not to have reflected much on the citizenry. One of the Presidential candidates is trying to make it a political issue by proposing the return of the subsidy. This has resulted in the subsidy debate appearing to play an important role in the country. The country has also made an attempt to withdraw the subsidy on electricity, thereby showing a total withdrawal of the subsidy in the energy sector.

 Doing so will not only ease the burden of rising electricity costs but also accelerate Nigeria’s progress toward multiple SDGs, ensuring a cleaner, fairer, and more resilient energy future. Considering the advantages of the subsidy removal as the country’s fiscal regime could not sustain the continued payment of the subsidy. It is the considered view that the government should not reverse itself but would need to re-channel the proceeds of the subsidy. Redirecting resources toward solar energy in all communities offers a cleaner, fairer alternative: energy security rooted in the sun that falls equally on every local government area. This is not charity; it is strategic investment that turns short-term pain into long-term resilience. Solar is uniquely suited to Nigeria. Abundant sunshine, modular technology, and falling costs make decentralised solar systems ideal for urban neighbourhoods, rural villages, schools, clinics, and markets. Mini-grids, rooftop installations, and solar street lighting can deliver reliable power where the national grid remains weak or absent. Instead of subsidising imported petrol that leaks across borders, public funds can underwrite solar kits for households, power productive uses for small businesses, and electrify.

N/O	SDG	Focus Area	Impact of Solar Investment
1	SDG 7	Affordable & Clean Energy	Expands access to reliable, renewable electricity. solar mini-grids and home systems offer the fastest route to electricity for off-grid communities while cutting reliance on expensive generators and kerosene.
2	SDG 13	Climate Action	Cuts carbon emissions by replacing diesel generators.  Nigeria contributes relatively little to global emissions yet suffers climate impacts—floods, droughts, and heat. Scaling solar reduces fossil fuel dependence, lowers carbon intensity, and builds adaptive capacity through resilient local energy systems. Poverty reduction
3	SDG 1	No Poverty	Reduces household energy costs, enabling savings and productivity. power irrigation and cold storage for farmers, and cut household spending on dirty fuels.
4	SDG 3	Health	Limits indoor air pollution from kerosene and diesel fumes.  homes escape indoor air pollution from generators and traditional cooking fuels.
5	SDG 8	Economic Growth	Creates green jobs in installation, maintenance, and manufacturing. . Solar installation, maintenance, and manufacturing create local jobs. Value chains in panels, batteries, and appliances can foster entrepreneurship, especially for youth and women. Infrastructure and innovation
6	SDG 11	Sustainable Communities	Powers schools, clinics, and businesses in underserved areas.
7	SDG 4	Education	benefits when students study under solar lights and schools power digital learning tools. Economic opportunity expands under
8	SDG 9	Infrastructure and innovation	gain from distributed generation that reduces pressure on the central grid and encourages private investment. Sustainable cities and communities

Critics will note that savings so far have been absorbed partly by debt servicing, wages, and other spending, and that citizens still await visible dividends. That is fair. Transparency and accountability must accompany any redirection of funds. Independent tracking of solar projects, community participation in design, and measurable targets—electrification rates, job numbers, emissions avoided—are essential. Pairing solar rollout with social safety nets for the most vulnerable during the transition would further ease hardship.