Shettima pushes stronger PPP drive to realise Nigeria’s $1tn economy goal

• …FG set to roll out 3.22m meters

​By Egena Sunday Ode

Vice President Kashim Shettima has called for an aggressive expansion of Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) as a cornerstone of Nigeria’s journey toward a $1 trillion economy.
​Presiding over the first 2026 meeting of the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) at the Presidential Villa on Thursday, the Vice President emphasized that the Federal Government is committed to unlocking the value of national assets and creating a fertile ground for foreign investment.
​​Shettima noted that the marriage of public enterprise and private sector dynamism is essential for sustainable development. However, he warned that the global investment community prioritizes stability and clarity over mere promises.
​“Investors are drawn not by rhetoric but by policy consistency, clarity, and credible reforms,” Shettima told council members.
​He urged the NCP to fast-track a pipeline of “bankable projects” and cautioned against overlapping mandates among government agencies, which he described as a primary deterrent to potential investors.
He also stressed the importance of rigorous post-privatization monitoring to ensure that sold assets actually contribute to the national interest.
​In a major update regarding the power sector, the Director-General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Ayodeji Gbeleyi, announced a nationwide offensive against estimated billing.
​The Federal Government is working to close Nigeria’s 5.6 million metering gap through the deployment of prepaid meters funded by a $500 million World Bank-backed Distribution Sector Recovery Programme.​
​3.22 Million total meters targeted for the current rollout phase, a
​1.43 Million prepaid meters for which contracts have been signed and units delivered and with 400,000 units already installed across the 11 electricity distribution companies (DisCos).​
​Gbeleyi explained that the metering initiative is not just about power, but about financial transparency and consumer trust.
By ensuring that consumers pay only for what they use, the government aims to improve the liquidity of the power sector.
​The BPE boss added that these reforms are direct components of President Bola Tinubu’s broader economic agenda to reposition Nigeria’s GDP toward the $1 trillion mark by fostering transparency and industrial growth.