The need to empower small businesses to flourish in a diversified economy becomes more imperative as the forecast of doomsday in the oil sector becomes  vivid.

Added to this, is the hazard inherent in a dry season without electricity supply for hospitals and other critical service providers.

This feature examines the travails of small businesses without power supply and the challenges of healthy living.

The rhythmic sound emanating from electricity generating sets were indicators of a society that has adopted a suicidal coping mechanism to face the challenges before it.

A society where noise pollution and environmental degradation has become the norm against a better alternative that should have been provided by stable power supply.

Small business owners groan daily as it becomes increasingly difficult to feed their families, with so much funds spent in fueling generating sets to keep their business going.

Even in hospitals where silence and constant power supply should be given, this noisome pestilence is the order of the day.

Expert analysis indicates that the country presently, produces and distributes a little above 3,000 megawatts instead of more that 9,000 megawatts it needs to function effectively.

Economic Managers and Financial Pundits all agree that the economy must be sufficiently diversified to stabilise the country in the face of impending economic disaster from oil misfortune.

Diversification of the economy and the inclusive growth envisaged can only succeed with adequate support for Small and Medium Scale Businesses.

Many shop owners have closed down while others are barely holding on. They do not have electricity supply but they must pay heavy and crazy bills.

The MD Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company, Mr Fortunato Leynes, told Channels Television that the issue of crazy bills and unmetered customers was being addressed.

No meaningful growth can be achieved without electricity supply no matter how much incentives the government dole out. Better effort must be made to power up communities and cities otherwise no sense would be made of the huge investment that government is still pumping to the power sector it had already sold.