The Kano state governor, Alhaji Abba Yusuf, has appealed to the federal government to increase the daily allocation of electricity to the Kano franchise area to boost Small and Medium Enterprises(SMEs) in the state.
According to him, SMEs contribute to 80 per cent of the stateās Gross Domestic Product((GDP), hence the need for more allocation to boost the economy and make the youths engage in productive activities.
The governor, who was represented by the Chief of Staff, Shehu Sagagi, made the appeal when he received the Hon. Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, who was on a working visit to the state on Thursday.
He explained that the recent power outage in the north has caused significant losses, worth billions of Naira, to indigenous industries and the stateās people. He noted that a constant power supply plays an integral part in any society, making small businesses work and improving revenue generation.
The state governor also sought to set up an emergency power plant to operate at a medium voltage level, construct a mini-grid power generation station for diversification, and establish a stand-alone solar power generation system for healthcare centres. He also sought to speed up the construction process of the second Kaduna-kano 330kva transmission line and the Daura-Kura-Jogana 330kva to reduce the burden on the national grid.
While assuring the state governmentās commitment to boosting local power generation, he said the state has commenced setting up a state electricity market to attract private investors in the sector and will also look at subsidising electricity in its next budget.
Therefore, he urged the minister to set up a Tripathi committee comprising the state, distribution companies, and the federal government to map out where there are insecurity threats and advise the security agencies accordingly to protect the national infrastructures.
In his remarks, the Minister said they are in the state to inspect installations and other infrastructure in the region and to discuss ways of collaboration to foster productive partnerships to deliver its mandate.
While empathising with the north over the recent power outage, he stressed the need for the state government to protect national assets and campaign against power thefts and vandalism while leveraging the autonomy given to states to generate power to boost the power supply in their states. He noted that only 10 states in the country have keyed into this.
