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Tinubu says Nigeria has become Africa’s leader in renewable energy skills development with the launch of the continent’s first Barefoot Renewable Energy College.
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New institution will train technicians, installers and maintenance professionals with globally recognised certifications to drive the clean energy transition.
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Federal Government says the project will create jobs, strengthen local expertise and position Nigeria as a regional hub for renewable energy innovation.
August 5, (THEWILL) — President Bola Tinubu has declared that Nigeria is taking the lead in renewable energy capacity development across Africa following the inauguration of the continent’s first Barefoot Renewable Energy College in Kogi State.
The President made the declaration on Tuesday while commissioning the college alongside the Green Hydrogen Research and Demonstration Pilot Plant at the Confluence University of Science and Technology, Osara.
Represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima, Tinubu said the project was designed to tackle one of Nigeria’s biggest structural challenges by transforming the country’s abundant renewable resources into economic opportunities, skilled jobs and sustainable electricity solutions.
Building the workforce for Africa’s energy transition
Tinubu described the institution as Africa’s first renewable energy college, modelled after India’s globally acclaimed Barefoot College programme, which trains ordinary citizens as solar engineers.
He said the initiative would help close the continent’s biggest gap in the clean energy transition not ambition, but skilled manpower.
“If that method could light the villages of Rajasthan, it can light the settlements of Kogi, Ondo and Cross River,” the President said.
“Nigeria assumes, from today, the position of pacesetter in renewable energy capacity development across Africa.”
According to Tinubu, the college will produce technicians, installers, operators and maintenance professionals with practical expertise in renewable energy technologies, equipping them for both local employment and international opportunities.
He added that graduates would receive internationally recognised certifications capable of opening doors across Africa and beyond.
“A certificate issued in Osara must one day command respect in Nairobi and in Frankfurt,” he said.
From groundbreaking to completion
The President said the speed with which the project was completed reflected a departure from Nigeria’s long history of abandoned public infrastructure.
“As a nation, we have become used to foundation stones that outlast the men who laid them,” he said.
“Two years ago, we stood on this ground for the groundbreaking of this institution. Today, we stand before a world-class edifice completed to international standards.”
Tinubu called on development partners, research institutions and private sector investors to collaborate with the college, saying Nigeria was ready to become a continental hub for renewable energy training and innovation.
Government targets jobs, innovation and investment
Kogi State Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo described the project as a major investment in human capital that would strengthen Nigeria’s energy sector, attract investment and create employment opportunities for young Nigerians.
Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Dr Kingsley Udeh, said the institution aligned with the Federal Government’s ambition of building a knowledge-driven economy capable of supporting Nigeria’s long-term growth aspirations.
He urged the pioneer students to uphold high technical and ethical standards as ambassadors of the new institution.
Director-General of the Energy Commission of Nigeria, Dr Mustapha Abdullahi, said the college features smart classrooms, battery energy laboratories, a mini-grid simulation centre, energy efficiency laboratories and other specialised training facilities.
He noted that the institution would support research, innovation and workforce development under the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda while helping prepare Nigeria for the global shift toward cleaner energy technologies.
Ogochukwu Onwaeze is a writer specializing in business and economic journalism. At THEWILL News Media, she translates market trends, financial developments, and policy shifts into clear and engaging stories.
