Déclaration de la CODDAE à propos des coupures d’électricité et à l’interdiction d’entrée des citernes d’hydrocarbures au Niger suite aux sanctions de la CEDEAO et de l’UEMOA

In any event, these senseless and murderous sanctions are in flagrant violation of international law. They remain illegal and humiliate their authors, as they demonstrate their over-inflated egos, their contempt and their arrogance towards the people of Niger. These sanctions could have been laughable if they had recognised that the current problem stems from several years of technical and financial mismanagement by Nigelec. Today, the people of Niger are entitled to see a new dynamic for electricity management put in place, bringing together all the national skills, such is the crucial importance of energy for development.

Faced with this situation, which is unrealistic to say the least, we members of the Collectif pour la Défense du Droit à l'Energie (CODDAE) have a duty to stand in solidarity with our country, Niger, to help put an end to the electricity embargo and the threats of all kinds made against our people by ECOWAS, UEMOA and their international mentors. How are we to understand the unprecedented blogging at the borders of kerosene and Jet A1, intended for airlines? The international community must remember that the future of Niger belongs to its people. These power cuts in Nigeria are the logical consequence of the failure to build the Kandadji dam on the River Niger, which would be equipped with a power station of 130 megawatts or more.

Today, the people of Niger are entitled to ask themselves another question: "How can we improve the governance and performance of the electricity sector to deal with the load shedding that is having a negative impact on the country's economy and the daily lives of the people?

This is why CODDAE is calling on the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland (CNSP) and the transitional government to take the bull by the horns, in order to put an end to the suffering that users are experiencing as a result of the disruption in the supply of electricity and hydrocarbons.

This energy crisis must lead Nigeriens to stop thinking of electricity as a simple consumer product, but as a priority vector for improving living and working conditions. May this wish figure prominently in the firm resolutions to be taken by the new authorities.

CODDAE points out that in certain neighbouring countries, this type of situation arises very rarely and within a relatively short period of time due to the existence of a reliable organisation of the electricity network. To make up for the lack of electricity, some consumers are turning to low- or medium-power production methods such as generators and photovoltaic panels, but whatever they are, they are very expensive products for our peaceful citizens.

There is therefore an urgent need to create the operational conditions to ensure the continuity and regularity of the electricity supply while awaiting the completion of the Kandadji project currently under construction, the Salkadamna coal-fired power station and future renewable energy projects, not forgetting the wind power sector which has favourable conditions in Niger.

CODDAE notes that this energy crisis, provoked by ECOWAS in violation of its own texts, is unjust, as the right to energy is prescribed in the Consumer Guiding Principles adopted by the United Nations. This is why CODDAE is calling on the CNSP and the transitional government to convene a major meeting to address the issue of the supply of electrical energy. In terms of electrical energy, the technical solution requires a great deal of time and resources. CODDAE therefore urges the Prime Minister, Mr Ali Mahamane Zène, to pay particular attention to this issue in his speeches.

In this context, revenues from the electricity sector may not cover the costs of production, transmission and distribution. The electricity supply equation represents an additional financial effort for the transitional government, but faced with the human, social and economic consequences of this situation, we have no doubt either of the resilience of our compatriots or of the CNSP's ability to find satisfactory solutions in the more or less short term.

Our country must never give in to threats designed to compromise the supply of electricity and the daily lives of our hard-working people. We have known since the advent of 26 July that it is wise to stand by Niger.

In this respect, CODDAE is asking Niger's loyal and faithful partners and economic operators to better assess the situation and preserve the ties supporting us in this ordeal imposed by certain countries with ulterior motives. And one of the ways in which this support can be provided is to help us rapidly resolve the electricity problem.

Finally, CODDAE, well aware of the texts of ECOWAS and UEMOA, knows that these two common institutions have violated their own texts, and consequently, subject to bringing a complaint before the competent courts for redress, makes the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Mr Omar Touray and certain Heads of State aware of the economic and social consequences that would ensue.

Niamey, Thursday, 07 September 2023

For the BEN/CODDAE, the President

Moustapha Kadi Oumani