Explore opportunities in clean energy investment, Ogunbiyi, Banga tell Nigeria’s private sector operators

<p>Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All, and Co-Chair of UN-Energy, Damilola Ogunbiyi and recently appointed World Bank President, Ajay Banga, met with private sector leaders, yesterday, in Abuja, as part of commitment towards mobilising finance for African countries’ energy, climate and development goals.</p>, <p>The visit to Abuja, a first for Banga in his new role as President of World Bank, is a clear, tangible step towards realising the mandate of the World Bank’s new Private Sector Investment Lab, which was recently announced in June this year.</p>, <p>The Lab was created to identify and focus on specific approaches that can be implemented and scaled by the World Bank to mobilize capital more effectively, with the goal of crowding in greater levels of private finance. Banga chairs the Lab, and Ogunbiyi was appointed as a founding member.</p>, <p>The duo met with private investors during a roundtable focused on the role of the private sector in delivering universal energy access.</p>, <p>They both highlighted the wide spectrum of investment opportunities in both grid-based and distributed renewable energy (DRE) solutions that exist in Nigeria and across Africa.</p>, <p>Among the topics discussed was the catalytic role the Nigeria Energy Transition Plan (ETP) has played in attracting private sector investment to energy and infrastructure projects in the country.</p>, <p>It’s on record that Nigeria launched its ETP in August 2022, emerging the first African nation to formulate a comprehensive strategy that seeks to help the nation transition from harmful fossil fuels to renewable, clean energy; achieve Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG7); and attain net-zero emissions by 2060.</p>, <p>Accordingly, a dedicated Energy Transition Office supported by Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) and the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) has been established to drive the plan’s activation and has secured a substantial invest