The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, has said that it is not okay for Nigerians to use firewood for cooking when the country is blessed with abundant gas resources.
Mr Ekpo spoke on Tuesday in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, at the launch of a federal initiative to expand nationwide access to Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), commonly known as cooking gas.
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“At the heart of this programme lies a simple but powerful conviction: that the promise of Nigeria’s abundant natural gas must translate into dignity, safety, and improved wellbeing for our people,” Mr Ekpo said.
“No mother should be compelled to choose between feeding her family and protecting her health. No child should inhale harmful smoke because cleaner energy remains beyond reach. No family should spend valuable hours searching for firewood when our nation is richly endowed with gas resources capable of powering safer and more dignified lives.”
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The initiative, called the National Grassroots LPG Penetration Programme, falls under Nigeria’s Decade of Gas Initiative and is executed in partnership with several private firms, including Seplat Energy, ExxonMobil, NNPC, NLNG, Dangote Group, SPDC, and TotalEnergies, according to a statement on the Decade of Gas website.
The programme aims to expand access to LPG and encourage households to adopt cleaner, safer, and more efficient cooking fuel.
According to the Decade of Gas Initiative, the Bayelsa activation signals the start of a state-by-state rollout that will bring the benefits of clean cooking energy to communities across the country.
The minister said Nigeria is blessed with over 215 trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas reserves, making it one of the foremost gas-endowed nations in the world.
“Our solemn responsibility is to ensure that this national endowment is converted into tangible benefits for our citizens. This is the driving philosophy behind the Decade of Gas Initiative and our commitment to making natural gas the fuel that powers Nigeria’s industrialisation, energy security, and shared economic prosperity,” he said.
Mr Ekpo said the launch of the initiative is a journey towards cleaner energy, healthier homes, and a more prosperous nation. He said Bayelsa has “earned a distinguished place in history as the launch state for this transformative national initiative”.
“This state-level rollout builds on the successful zonal phase previously implemented by the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Petroleum Resources (Gas), across the six geopolitical zones, with one state representing each zone.
“Those rollouts gave us valuable lessons, deepened stakeholder collaboration, and strengthened our resolve that access to clean cooking energy must be expanded with urgency, purpose, and compassion to every Nigerian household.
“With Bayelsa State as the starting point, we are now moving from regional implementation to a broader state-by-state deployment designed to reach households more directly and more effectively.
“This marks a decisive step towards ensuring that the benefits of clean cooking are felt where they matter most: in our homes, our communities, and the daily lives of our citizens,” Mr Ekpo said.
The minister said President Bola Tinubu’s administration is committed to unlocking Nigeria’s gas resources for national development.
‘It’s time to think about the Niger Delta people’ – Gov Diri
Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State flagged off the free distribution of the LPG cylinders.
He commended the federal government and its partners for the initiative, saying that the people of Bayelsa will benefit immensely from it.
“We have cried, we have fought against environmental degradation and the abandonment of our people. While the cities are built with money from our soil, we languish in poverty. We use firewood to cook, while they use gas from our land to cook,” Mr Diri said.
“But today, the story is changing.
“It is time for us to think about the people of the Niger Delta and give back to the people of the Niger Delta. That is what we are witnessing today.”
The governor said he had been thinking about how to get Bayelsa residents to switch from firewood to cooking gas, and that the launch of the initiative came at the right time.
“This will be the beginning of getting our women and our people out of firewood cooking,” he said.
PREMIUM TIMES recently reported how global supply disruptions and longstanding domestic bottlenecks combined to drive up the cost of LPG, leaving consumers and businesses under severe pressure.
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