By Faridat Salifu
The Global Initiative for Food Security and Ecosystem Preservation (GIFSEP), in partnership with the Secure Energy Project (SEP), on Tuesday launched a national advocacy campaign on solar power in Nigeria, amid strong warnings from experts, lawmakers and civil society leaders that the country is not ready for an immediate ban on imported solar panels.
The campaign was formally unveiled at a high-level policy event held at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja, where key findings from a nationwide study titled “Assessing Nigeria’s Preparedness for a Potential Immediate Ban on Solar Panel Imports” were presented.
The launch also featured a national stakeholders’ forum, technical policy session and expert panel discussion on the future of solar manufacturing in Nigeria and the country’s broader energy transition pathway.
National survey data, industry experts, civil society leaders, lawmakers and renewable energy professionals at the event warned that Nigeria is not ready for an immediate ban on imported solar panels, noting that such a policy could deepen energy poverty, raise energy costs and restrict access to electricity for millions of households and businesses.
A national survey conducted among 1,200 adults across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory found that 98.5 per cent of Nigerians believe the country is not ready to meet its solar energy needs without imports.
The survey, which recorded a 95 per cent confidence level and a 4.26 per cent margin of error, revealed that nearly 50 per cent of Nigerians live without stable grid access, leaving about 85 million people dependent on alternative power sources.
Researchers described solar power in Nigeria not as a lifestyle choice but as a survival tool for households and small businesses struggling with unreliable electricity supply.
Off-grid systems and mini-grids were identified as the primary lifeline for communities outside stable grid coverage, with the market driven largely by necessity and extreme price sensitivity.
Survey data showed that 70.4 per cent of respondents expect a solar import ban to trigger cost spikes and reduced access to energy solutions, while only 23 per cent of Nigerians were found to be fully aware of the proposed policy, raising concerns about market panic, misinformation and public backlash.
Market analysis presented at the session showed that locally produced solar panels currently cost between ₦15,000 and ₦20,000 more per unit for 300W–400W panels, representing price increases of up to 25 per cent for consumers.
For an average household system using four 400W panels, the cost difference was estimated at an additional ₦80,000, equivalent to the price of an inverter or battery upgrade.
Industrial assessments revealed that domestic manufacturing remains constrained by raw material shortages, full dependence on imported silicon cells, unstable power supply, high generator costs, batch losses during production and customs clearance delays exceeding four weeks for essential components.
Despite these challenges, experts acknowledged that some local manufacturers already operate functional production lines, testing laboratories and certification facilities capable of producing panels ranging from 20W to 550W capacities.
Delivering the keynote address, Dr. Michael David, Executive Director of GIFSEP, said Nigeria remains a paradoxical energy economy, rich in resources but plagued by chronic power shortages that affect homes, clinics, schools and businesses.
David said more than 86 million Nigerians currently lack access to electricity, describing solar energy as no longer a luxury but a lifeline for survival, productivity and economic opportunity.
He warned that while the push for local solar manufacturing is strategic, an immediate import ban would “cut off a lifeline” for millions who rely on imported solar systems as their primary source of power.
According to him, Nigeria currently lacks the manufacturing capacity, infrastructure and supply chains required to meet national demand without imports.
Also speaking, Terseer Ugbor, Chairman of the House Committee on Environment, said the national conversation on solar manufacturing must balance industrial development with energy access.
Ugbor said the long-term goal of producing solar panels, batteries and components locally is to reduce installation costs and expand access to clean energy, particularly in rural areas where energy poverty is most severe.
He acknowledged that imported panels are often cheaper due to large-scale production in countries like China, but said Nigeria can close the gap through structured technology transfer, localized assembly and gradual capacity building.
“There is enough demand in Nigeria to support local production,” he said, adding that domestic manufacturing would create jobs, strengthen local content and reduce long-term dependence on foreign imports.
On the proposed solar import ban, Ugbor said a full ban may not be viable in the short term, proposing instead a phased transition using tariffs and import duties to protect local manufacturers while allowing the market to grow sustainably.
The expert panel session, moderated by Daniel Oladoja, reinforced concerns about the feasibility of an immediate import ban and highlighted structural weaknesses in Nigeria’s renewable energy ecosystem.
Panelists including Ayo Ademila, President of the Renewable Energy Association of Nigeria (REAN), Busayo Omofe, and Muhammad Suyud Abdullahi, Special Adviser at the National Agency for Science and Engineering Innovation (NASENI), agreed that Nigeria’s renewable energy sector faces a persistent gap between demand and domestic production capacity.
The panel disclosed that Nigeria’s local solar manufacturing sector currently supplies only about 10 per cent of national demand, leaving the market overwhelmingly dependent on imports.
They said that even with local assembly plants in operation, Nigeria lacks the full upstream and downstream infrastructure required for large-scale manufacturing, including access to high-purity silicon, specialized glass, aluminum, energy storage materials and reliable baseload power.
Experts warned that scaling production without solving these structural constraints could inflate solar panel prices, encourage market distortions, fuel black-market trade and create artificial scarcity.
The panel advocated a hybrid strategy that balances local manufacturing with strategic imports, including reduced tariffs on critical components, investment in energy infrastructure, human capital development, partnerships with international manufacturers and coordinated regulatory frameworks.
NASENI’s role was highlighted as a key institutional driver, with the agency already moving beyond research into commercialization of local solar technologies through its “Creation, Commercialization and Collaboration” model.
Panelists also stressed that Nigeria’s broader energy deficit with peak grid capacity of about 6,000 MW and much lower actual supply continues to limit both manufacturing growth and large-scale renewable deployment.
They noted that international development partners and local energy access programmes have shown that context-specific, affordable and community-focused solar solutions are more effective than importing global policy models without adaptation.
Policy experts at the session presented three pathways: an immediate ban, a phased restriction model over three to five years, and a tariff-based system combining duties on finished products with zero-duty incentives on raw materials.
The phased restriction model received support from 80 per cent of industry experts, who described it as the most viable option for balancing industrial growth, affordability and energy access.
Participants warned that an abrupt ban could trigger scarcity, counterfeit products, market stagnation and potential job losses in the installation and distribution sector.
The forum concluded that while Nigeria supports the long-term vision of a domestic solar manufacturing industry, the country currently lacks the infrastructure, supply chains, power stability and market readiness required for an immediate import ban, making a phased, strategic transition the most realistic path to energy security, industrial growth and sustainable development.
