The immediate past managing director/CEO of Nigeria’s Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Damilola Ogunbiyi has resumed duty at the United Nations where she has been appointed to serve as the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Sustainable Energy for All, Co-Chair of UN Energy, and CEO of Sustainable Energy for All.
Her new appointment came after making her mark in the present administration of President Buhari where she served for four and half years.
Commenting on the new job, Ogunbiyi said she is passionate about her responsibilities as she helps global citizens embrace sustainable energy in line with UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, including Goal 7.
According to a statement issued to mark her assumption at the global organisation, she said, “As we begin this new decade, we are far from achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, including Goal 7, that promises sustainable energy for all. Energy is central to nearly every major challenge and opportunity the world faces today. Around the world, close to a billion people are being robbed of the chance to live in a dignified, healthy way because they have no access to energy. This crisis has gone on for too long.”
Speaking further, “Throughout my career, I have witnessed the transformative effect that bringing energy to people can have. I’ve seen how energy access can give children the chance for much better education, and for their parents to build prosperous, fulfilling lives. With just 10 years left to 2030, the challenge ahead of us is enormous. But we are ready to meet this challenge head-on. We will raise ambition. We will enable change on the ground. We will build networks and partnerships. We will gather accurate data on energy, and use it, to find the solutions to energy poverty and to also identify the vast opportunities for the private sector. And we will do this while putting real people at the heart of everything we do.”