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AfrElec INVESTMENT AfrElec
Uganda to borrow $331mn for
electricity access drive
UGANDA UGANDA’S Parliament has approved a request host communities and women,” he said.
for government to borrow up to $331.5mn, from Amos further stated that the Ministry of
the International Development Association of Energy and Mineral Development and the
the World Bank Group, upon which it will obtain Uganda Energy Credit Capitalisation Company
a grant worth $276.5mn. (UECCC) will be the main project implement-
The loan is for financing the Electricity ing partners.
Access Scale Up Project (EASP), whose aim is to The loan request did not meet any resistance
increase access to electricity across the whole of during its processing in the committee and in
the East African country. plenary, which MPs attributed to the project’s
Presenting the loan request to Parliament, the equitable nature.
Minister of State for Planning, Amos Lugoloobi, “Ordinarily we [the opposition] are not
said the EASP envisages an increase in access to opposed to borrowing,” said Medard Sseggona,
electricity from the current 19% to 44% by 2027. who represented the Leader of the Opposition
Lugoloobi added that the loan is expected in Parliament (LOP). “We are only opposed to
to increase the share of clean energy usage for misguided borrowing and poor loan manage-
cooking from 15% to 40% by that year. ment but with respect to this loan, it is national
He said that the project will be equitable as it in character and reflects equitable distribution. It
will include the disadvantaged communities in is good for development.”
its beneficiaries. “The project will benefit house- He applauded the grant component as among
holds, commercial enterprises, industrial parks, the conditions for the loan and asked govern-
public institutions. It will support refugees and ment to formulate a debt management policy.
Nigerian governors take
government to court over
power plant sales
THIRTY-SIX Nigerian state governors are (NDPHCL).
NIGERIA threatening to take the country’s federal govern- “The Forum… instructed its lawyers to
ment to court in order to stop the privatization approach the Federal High Court which, at
of 10 power plants. present has issued a court order restraining all
The governors, under the aegis of the Nige- the parties in the suit from taking any step or
ria Governors’ Forum (NGF), have rejected the action that will make or render the outcome of
power plants that are part of the National Inte- the motion on notice seeking for interlocutory
grated Power Projects (NIPPs). injunction nugatory,” the NGT statement said.
The governors’ decision to oppose the privati- “The effect of the order of the court is that
sation follows a virtual meeting of the NGF, and respondents cannot proceed with the pro-
was announced by chairman Governor Aminu posed sale of the power plants belonging to the
Tambuwal on November 22. Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited
Following the move, NGF has success- (NDPHCL) until the hearing and determina-
fully received a court order pausing the sale tion of the motion on notice for interlocutory
Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited injunction.”
P6 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 47 23•November•2022
