A World Bank report has shown that 39.4% of Nigerians lack access to electricity.
The apex bank shared this insight in its recently published Poverty and Equity Brief for April 2025.
The data comes amid statements by the country’s Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, claiming that 150 million people in the country have access to adequate electricity.
Adelabu made the claim during a ministerial briefing organised by the Ministry of Information and National Orientation in April.
While speaking with SaharaReporters, the Minister’s spokesperson, Bolaji Tunji, defended the claim after harsh criticisms from the Nigerian populace, including the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).
“There is nothing wrong with the Minister’s statement. We know that we are about 230 million persons in Nigeria. However, while electricity can be unreliable in terms of availability, there is access for 150 million people—even if the electricity may not be available to the extent to which they want it, they are connected,” he said.
“However, we are working to make things better and provide better electricity while working to ensure that those not connected are connected too,” he added.
The NLC described the Minister’s statement—that 150 million Nigerians have access to “adequate electricity” with a power generation of 5,500MW—as a blatant insult to Nigerians’ intelligence and lived realities.
“For the Minister to suggest that over 150 million Nigerians have access to reliable power in a country that struggles to generate a meagre and inconsistent 5,000 megawatts — far below the global benchmark of 1,000MW per one million people — is to insult the intelligence and lived realities of Nigerians,” the Congress stated in its response.
The NLC, in a statement, pointed out that based on global standards, Nigeria should be generating at least 150,000MW to provide reliable electricity to its population—far beyond the 5,500MW the country can currently generate, which remains erratic and unreliable.
The NLC further questioned the Minister’s claims, asking where the power plants capable of achieving such output are located and whether the necessary transmission infrastructure has been upgraded to support such a high level of supply.
“Where are the power plants that make this level of supply possible? Where is the upgraded transmission infrastructure to support such output? Why are our homes still shrouded in darkness and our factories shutting down daily?” the NLC asked, challenging the validity of the Minister’s statement.
The Congress labelled the Minister’s remarks as a “bad joke” to the Nigerian people, stressing that millions—especially in rural areas and urban slums—continue to live without electricity.
Nigerians have long lamented poor access to electricity, with inadequate infrastructure and alleged corruption blamed for the incessant power outages in different parts of the country.
