The governance of energy transition: lessons from the Nigerian electricity sector

Background The rising need for transition towards more sustainable energy sources requires a rethink in the governance of energy systems. Arguably, policy makers have very important roles in governing transitions in any given society through established institutional frameworks. It has also been argued that energy infrastructure choices are determined by institutional dynamics and structures. However, what are the underlying influences required to change energy systems and what lessons can we draw from them for the governance of energy transition? This study focuses on understanding the dynamics of energy transition governance in the Nigerian electricity sector with the aim of drawing lessons that impact on energy transition and energy systems change. Methods Using explorative research tools, this study investigates the dynamics of energy transition governance in the Nigerian electricity sector with the aim of drawing lessons that impact on energy transition and energy systems change. Data from primary and secondary sources in documentary archives as well as other published sources that are linked with the provision of the Nigerian historical energy infrastructure were used for the analysis in order to draw lessons on energy transition dynamics in Nigeria. Results The study revealed that there were three important factors that had a direct impact on energy transition and energy systems change in Nigeria’s electricity sector. These are: (1) Changing perceptions and goals (during the period leading up to Nigeria’s independence, 1890–1960s); (2) Direct government interventions in energy infrastructure provisions (1940s–1970s); and (3) Major changes in market rules (from 2005 and beyond). Conclusions The study concludes by highlighting that: (1) there is a need for government institutions to tackle energy access issues that address the needs of the poor; (2) it is imperative to explore technological options that are more sustainable; and (3) there is a need to address energy consumption patterns that are more energy intensive. Indeed, available energy resources, technological changes in electricity supply systems, and the ‘geographies of energy’ are major factors that influence energy production and consumption dynamics. All of them needs should be considered, as energy decisions are primarily political choices.

The Governance of Energy Transition: Lessons from the Nigerian Electricity Sector

BackgroundThe rising need for energy transition towards more sustainable energy sources requires a rethink in the governance of energy systems. Arguably, policy makers have very important roles in governing transitions in any given society through established institutional frameworks. It has also been argued that energy infrastructure choices are determined by institutional dynamics and structures. However, what are the influences underlying changes in energy systems and what lessons can we draw from them for the governance of energy transition? This study focuses on understanding the dynamics of energy transition governance within the Nigerian electricity sector with the aim of drawing lessons that impact on energy transition and energy systems change.MethodsUsing explorative research tools, this research explores the dynamics of energy transition governance within the Nigerian electricity sector with the aim of drawing lessons that impact on energy transition and energy systems change. Data from primary and secondary sources in documentary archives and other published sources that links to the Nigerian historical energy infrastructure provisions were used for analysis in order to draw lessons on energy transition dynamics in Nigeria.ResultsThe study revealed that there were three important factors that had a direct impact on energy transition and energy systems change within Nigeria’s electricity sector. These are: (1) Changing perceptions and goals (during the period leading up to Nigeria’s independence, 1890 – 1960s); (2) Direct government interventions in energy infrastructure provisions (1940s – 1970s); and (3) Major changes in market rules (from 2005 and beyond).ConclusionsThe study concludes by highlighting that: (1) there is a need for government institutions to tackle energy access issues that addresses the needs of the poor; (2) it is imperative to explore technological options that are more sustainable; and (3) there is a need to address energy consumption patterns that are more energy intensive. Indeed, available energy resources, technological changes in electricity supply systems, and the ‘geographies of energy’ are major factors that influence energy production and consumption dynamics. All of these needs to be considered as energy decisions are primarily political choices.

Local resource-based development potential as reflected in waste management/circularity transition: Governance barriers in Hungary

Waste as a local resource is a development opportunity for resource owners as waste may act as a foundation for bottom-up development at local levels. This paper presents the most important governance challenges that hamper a paradigmatic change in resource efficiency, a transition towards circular economy in the case of Pécs (Hungary). In recent years waste management infrastructure has evolved to provide resource potentials for recycling and reuse, this is a first step towards a (circularity) transition, however, the centralisation of power is hampering local transitions. The article concludes by arguing that in Pécs (Hungary), the transition towards a local resource-based development is impeded by a myriad of legal, institutional and administrative obstacles created by recent efforts towards institutionalisation.

Questioning Low-Carbon Transition Governance: A Comparative Analysis of European Case Studies

To achieve the international emission reduction targets, current researches underline the need to overcome the dominant techno-centric approaches to energy transition, in favor of analyses that explore in more detail those practices and organizational assets that play a role in favoring a transition towards a low-carbon society. In this light, the article focuses on governance practices and, in particular, on the different tools and actors involved across variable scales and temporalities. Drawing on the activities of the ERASMUS+ Strategic Partnership for Higher Education LOTUS (Locally Organized Transition of Urban Sustainable Spaces), a selection of European case studies is explored and compared in light of (i) the implemented actions in terms of energy production and efficiency measures, (ii) the legal framework and the origin of the funding and (iii) the number and type of involved actors and their partnerships. On this basis, the analysis outlines, from both a theoretical and a practical stand, a number of critical issues that characterize these episodes of energy transition governance. In particular, the authors reflect upon the interaction between energy measures and urban contexts, the need for synergies among government level and the emergence of new forms of partnership among public, private and third parties’ actors.

Conflict transition, emplaced identity and the gendered politics of scale in Solomon Islands

Although there is growing recognition that women’s participation is critical for the durability of peaceful conflict transition, grounded research examining the political scale of women’s participation has not been common. Where feminist researchers have tackled this topic, they have generally reproduced binary representations of political space, sometimes strongly critical of local spaces as restrictive of women, sometimes strongly critical of a hegemonic liberal international. In this article, I address the issue of women’s participation in conflict transition governance from another more ethnographic angle, drawing from fieldwork conducted in the Solomon Islands, a Pacific Islands country destabilised by conflict in the late 1990s and early 2000s. I apply theories of political scale to consider where and how women are politically active in the conflict transition environment, how that political activity is constituted relative to other political scales and where and how women seek to make their political ambitions understood. The ‘emplacement’ lens I develop offers a critical vantage point for analysis of the ways women constitute political identities and the agendas they might meaningfully progress, at scales ranging from the small worlds of the household and the community to the broader scale of national politics.