Assessment of Nigeria’s Solar Photovoltaic Industry Value Chain: Gaps and Development Opportunities

Nigeria's solar photovoltaic industry has expanded rapidly in response to declining technology costs and growing off-grid market demand, yet the domestic value chain remains heavily import-dependent, creating supply vulnerability, foreign exchange pressure, and missed opportunities for local industrial development and job creation. This study assesses the structure, performance, and development opportunities within Nigeria's solar photovoltaic industry value chain, mapping actors from equipment importation through distribution, installation, and after-sales services to end-of-life management. Primary data were collected through structured interviews with 45 value chain actors including importers, distributors, installers, training providers, and financial intermediaries operating in Lagos, Abuja, Kano, and Port Harcourt. Value chain analysis tools including actor mapping, function-flow diagramming, and competitiveness assessment are applied to identify value chain gaps and leverage points. Results identify domestic assembly as the most proximate local manufacturing opportunity, with three importers already conducting partial assembly operations. The assembly sector could generate 8,000 to 12,000 additional jobs if fiscal incentives and local content requirements were extended to the solar industry in a manner comparable to the automobile assembly sector. Panel recycling and end-of-life management infrastructure is entirely absent, representing an emerging environmental risk. The study recommends a Solar Industry Development Strategy for Nigeria incorporating local content targets, assembly facility investment incentives, and a national solar panel recycling programme. Keywords: solar photovoltaic, value chain, Nigeria, local manufacturing, industry development.