By Okechukwu Nnodim
A total of 74 per cent of power users in Nigeria are dissatisfied with the supply of electricity across the country, the World Bank has said.
It also stated that while 93 per cent of metered power users paid their bills regularly, 78 per cent of electricity consumers in Nigeria received less than 12 hours of supply daily.
The bank disclosed this in its Power Sector Recovery Programme Opinion Research Fact Sheet obtained in Abuja on Friday, as it noted that the findings were done after a thorough survey conducted by the global financial institution.
Providing highlights from its findings and analysis of the PSRP, the bank said 93 per cent of consumers paid their electricity bills regularly whenever their units were exhausted.
It said, “Seventy-six per cent (power users are) willing to pay more for electricity if supply improves. Sixty-seven per cent agree that electricity theft is a big issue and affects quality of supply.
“Fifty-eight per cent do not have a meter to measure electricity use. Seventy-eight per cent have less than 12 hours daily access
to electricity. Sixty-two per cent do not believe that the power sector is being managed efficiently.”
It added, “Seventy-four per cent are dissatisfied with electricity supply. Eighty-seven per cent are unaware of ongoing reforms (PSRP) in the power sector.
“Fifty-three per cent do not receive adequate customer service from Discos (distribution companies). Eighty-two per cent are unaware of tariff band classifications.”
On some of its key findings after the survey in its Opinion Research Fact Sheet, the World Bank stated that electricity supply was rated poorly by respondents.
It said, “Metering is a key concern nationwide – respondents were generally dissatisfied with the metering system. Electricity tariff is a nationwide concern.
“There should be significant improvement in service delivery before increase in tariff. Majority of respondents are unaware of the key policies and activities of government and operators.”
It added, “Electricity theft and vandalism are major issues and impact significantly on the quality of power supply.
“Respondents express high level of distrust with regards to government’s commitment to improving power supply.”
The bank said the survey respondents consisted of Nigerians of broad demographics such as age, sex, education and economic status. It noted that opinion research was the best practice for the development and implementation of national communication campaigns.
It explained that data and information from the nationwide survey and focus group discussions would provide key insight about public opinion in relation to the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry. The bank stated that the opinion research entailed the use of quantitative and qualitative methods to capture and collate respondent data.
It said focus group discussions were conducted in Abuja, Lagos and Abia to obtain qualitative insight into electricity consumer behaviour, perceptions and beliefs.
“The six-day national opinion research survey had a sample size of 1,800 respondents from six states – Abia, Bauchi, Federal Capital Territory, Rivers and Lagos,” the global institution stated.
On perception of issues within the sector, the bank stated that for the Power Sector Recovery Programme, research findings would form the basis of its communications and stakeholder engagement strategy. The World Bank had on Wednesday declared that businesses in Nigeria lose about $29bn annually as a result of the country’s poor electricity.
It had also observed that Nigeria had the largest number of people without access to electricity in the world. It had explained that every one in 10 people in the world without access to electricity now reside in Nigeria.
Originally published at PUNCH