President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appointed Abba Abubakar Aliyu as the substantive Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), effective January 23, 2025.
Aliyu has been serving as the acting Managing Director of the REA since March 2024. Prior to this role, he was the Head of the Nigeria Electrification Project (NEP) at the REA, overseeing the implementation of a $550 million facility funded by the World Bank and the African Development Bank. He also held the position of General Manager at the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc and served as Senior Special Assistant to the Minister of Power on policy.
With over two decades of experience in energy policy and organizational development, Aliyu has played pivotal roles in various sectors, including power, environment, banking, water resources, infrastructure, education, and health. His leadership was instrumental in securing approval for the $750 million Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) facility from the World Bank, building on the success of the NEP.
President Tinubu expressed confidence that Aliyu’s expertise will drive the REA’s mission of expanding electricity access to rural communities, aligning with the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda on sustainable energy.
