Nigeria’s presidential aspirant, Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, has sounded the alarm over the country’s shrinking returns from the oil and gas sector, warning that fossil fuels could become obsolete globally within the next two decades.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, Hashim urged the Nigerian government to act swiftly and strategically to extract the maximum possible value from its petroleum resources before the global energy transition becomes irreversible.
“Oil and gas will become irrelevant within 20 years,” Hashim stated. “We must capitalize on our resources now, while they still hold significance in the global market.”
Hashim criticized Nigeria’s lack of substantial investment in the sector over the past 20 years, highlighting that over half of the country’s current oil production relies on infrastructure developed during the military regime of General Ibrahim Babangida.
“More than 50% of our oil output comes from investments made during Babangida’s era. What have our democratic governments achieved in the last two decades?” he questioned.
He attributed the nation’s poor performance in the sector to inefficiency, corruption, and mismanagement, lamenting that Nigeria has failed to translate its abundant natural resources into tangible economic prosperity.
“Possessing resources is not enough — it’s how you manage them that matters, and in that, we have fallen short,” he said.
Hashim called for urgent reforms in energy sector governance and a bold move towards economic diversification, warning that Nigeria risks being left behind if it fails to adapt to the rapidly evolving global energy landscape.