Nigeria’s electricity tariff hikes are pricing households and businesses out of the market, the Nigerian Institute of Social and Economic Research (NISER) has warned.
Findings presented at a seminar in Ibadan show that 92% of households and 67.5% of firms now consider electricity unaffordable. NISER Director-General Prof. Antonia Simbine said the burden is squeezing household incomes and threatening the survival of young, small-scale enterprises.
“Tariff reforms must be paced and structured in line with the paying capacity of households and firms if they are to succeed. What is the point of putting an essential product on the market if nobody can afford to buy it?” she said.
The report also found that while reliance on diesel and petrol has fallen, solar adoption has risen by 31% as consumers seek alternatives. Prof. Simbine urged policymakers to link tariff adjustments with improvements in supply reliability, expand decentralised renewable systems, and protect vulnerable groups with targeted incentives.
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