Metro
How erratic power supply escalated poverty among artisans in Osun
By Afolabi Faramade
As the economy bites harder, many artisans in Osogbo, Osun State have turned to “Okada” business in their attempt to make ends meet as a result of the erratic power supply.
The declining economy is affecting the people as inflation has made things very difficult. Artisans now struggle very hard to feed on daily basis.
According to recent estimates, the population of people living below the poverty line has increased astronomically.
While the unemployed ones struggle to get jobs, the professionals in various vocational skills find it difficult to cope with the present economic challenges as they live from hand to mouth.
Confronted with the grim situation of running their families on a daily basis, majority of the artisans have shifted their attention to “Okada’’ or motorcycle business as an alternative.
Kazeem Sulaiman, 45, is a welder by profession. He depends on the national power supply to operate his welding machine and carry out other professional tasks.
He produces iron gates and other metal products in his workshop located at Powerline, along New Ikirun Road, Osogbo. However, due to incessant power outages, he now depends mainly on “Okada” transport business for his livelihood.
In a chat, he disclosed that the transport business is just a temporary measure for him to weather the storm of economic hardship.
According to him, welding remains his main profession. He appealed to the Federal Government
to come to the aid of artisans who depend on the power supply to do their jobs.
For more than two decades after the return to civil rule in 1999, the Federal Government has spent huge amounts of money on the power sector to boost power generation. However, the country still faces the problem of epileptic power supply.
President Goodluck Jonathan administration embarked on power sector reforms in 2013 to improve power distribution in the country.
Under this initiative, the power distribution companies were privatized to core investors. Despite these efforts, the power sector is still grappling with numerous challenges.
This year alone, the National Power Grid has collapsed several times, throwing the entire country into darkness.
Article written by Afolabi Faramade
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