The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board NCDMB has reaffirmed its commitment to preventive mechanisms against corrupt practices in its internal operations and interface with stakeholders as well as transparency in local content implementation processes.

In another development, the Board on Wednesday in Yenagoa expressed profound gratitude to industry stakeholders, top-ranking vendors and members of staff for their contributions to the success of the Practical Nigerian Content PNC Forum 2024.

The Executive Secretary/CEO of the NCDMB, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe made the commitment on Thursday at the Nigerian Content Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, at an event organised by the Board to mark the international anti-corruption day.

He disclosed that the NCDMB is deliberate in its efforts to curb instances of corruption and has signaled its firm resolve through adequate support to the Board’s Anti-Corruption Unit (ACTU-NCDMB) by providing it with a functional office and giving it a free hand to discharge its functions.

Among crucial steps taken by the Management of the Board is a partnership with the Anti-corruption Academy of Nigeria, an arm of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Related Offences Commission ICPC, where staff of the Board undertook capacity building trainings in corruption prevention techniques, strategies for effective workplace anti-corruption campaign, bribery and corruption risk assessment, among others.

Ogbe stated further that the Board “has instituted corruption risk assessment covering major functions” of the organisation including “human resources, procurement, monitoring and evaluation, planning, research and statistics…in a bid to mitigate vulnerabilities to corruption across the board.”  

He enjoined staffers to be diligent in their work and to avoid corrupt or fraudulent practices, while reiterating his resolve to protect the institution from all forms of corrupt tendencies through preventive strategies.

Engr. Ogbe said in marking the International Anti-corruption Day (IACD), focus is on raising the consciousness of our youths on the ills of corruption and “to send a strong message for extra vigilance by all of us in combating the menace of corruption from all fronts.”

In a welcome address, the Chairman, ACTU-NCDMB, Alhaji Abdulmalik Halilu, thanked the Executive Secretary for the support he provides to the ACTU Unit, which ensures that it discharges its functions in line with established the protocols. 

He said ACTU-NCDMB was impressed with far-reaching measures put in place internally to eliminate fraudulent practices, including the creation of the Projects Inspectorate Directorate “to ensure that our processes were established to drive execution of the Board’s projects and also interface with industry.” He also applauded the approval for the automation of Board processes. 

He explained why the Board marked the international anti-corruption day by organizing a debate competition among select federal government colleges in the country, with each the six geopolitical zones of the country represented by one school.

According to him “we are celebrating this International Anti-corruption Day by exploring the latent potentials of the next generation of leaders as agents of change in the fight against corruption in all facets of our lives.”

He added that “enhancing effective citizen engagement depends on the pervasive participatory culture among citizens,” pointing out that schools as effective agents of socialisation were a proper ground for campaigns on ethical reorientation and inculcation of cherished values. 

At the end of the keenly contested debate competition, Federal Government College, Warri, Delta State emerged winners. The school, represented by Miss Osanoritse Blessing Kowe and Miss Eyituoyo Anne-Marie Awala, scored 76.4per cent to defeat Federal Government Girls College, Kazaure, Jigawa State, represented by Miss Sabiu Rabiatu Ibrahim and Miss Khadiya Shamsuddin, who obtained 74.4per cent.

To qualify for the grand finale of the debate competition, Team FGC Warri had defeated Team FGC Maiduguri, while Team FGGC Kazaure had edged out Team FGC Abuja.

Each of the four students that reached the finals of the debate, titled “Impact of Integrity on the Expansion of Public Trust and Confidence in Governance,” received a top-of-the-range HP laptop, in addition to a plaque for the team, among other prizes.

Other activities marking the day included the presentation by the Anti-corruption Commissioner for Rivers and Bayelsa States, Mrs. Ekere Usiere. She commended the Management of the NCDMB for its unstinting support to ACTU-NCDMB and the campaigns of the ICPC.

Her paper entitled “From Fear to Courage: Overcoming Barriers to Whistleblowing in Nigeria” addressed issues such as the Nigerian Whistleblowing Policy, Objectives of the Policy, Guidelines for Whistleblowing, Important Milestones Recorded by the Policy, Institutional Recipients of Whistleblowing, Overcoming Psycho-cultural and Systemic Challenges to Whistleblowing in Nigeria, and Leveraging on Information and Technology to Advance.

The Anti-Corruption Commissioner was emphatic that “Citizens need to overcome cultural, psychological and systemic challenges to blow the whistle against corruption and other ills bedeviling our country Nigeria.”

She urged Nigerians to get involved in whistleblowing, pointing out that “We are in an age of breakthrough in information and technology where geographic boundaries have become almost irrelevant.” According to her, “We can leverage on information and social media platforms to advance whistleblowing in Nigeria.”

NCDMB ranks as Nigeria’s foremost public sector agency for institutional integrity and high standards in service delivery, having been named the Best Performing Agency in transparency and efficiency by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council PEBEC back-to-back from 2022 to 2024.

Meanwhile, Engr. Ogbe had while speaking at the official closing ceremony of the four-day PNC Forum held at the Conference Centre of the Nigerian Content Tower NCT, said the stakeholders’ active participation enriched discussions as the Board charts a pathway to the next frontier for Nigerian Content implementation.

He reiterated the Board’s determination to deepen engagements with local communities and oil and gas industry players through sundry schemes newly introduced, such as the Back-to-the-Creeks Initiative, the Revised Nigerian Content Community Contractors Financing Scheme, Nigerian Content Academy, and creation of more conducive and befitting zonal offices to enhance service delivery by the Board.

“The Back-to-the-Creeks policy is designed to equip youths in our communities with the skills to meet industry demands through improvement of basic educational facilities and motivation of teachers. In regard to the Contractors Financing Scheme, he explained that the Board has increased the single obligor limit from N20 million to N100 million.

“What that does is that it gives more opportunities for local contractors to be able to access higher figures to enable them to secure and execute meaningful contracts in the oil and gas industry. In that way, the Scheme would serve as a mechanism “to bring the benefits of local content to communities”, he said

The CEO, Secretary, who was represented by the General Manager, Corporate Communications and Zonal Coordination, Barr. Esueme Dan Kikile, expressed joy that the Board’s partnership with the Bank of Industry (BOI) is working well, that “performance is at optimal level,” and that the new funding scheme would be hugely beneficial to local contractors.

On the Nigerian Content Academy, he said NCDMB has the experience, the capacity in-house, and “the understanding of what it means to practise Nigerian Content,” having done that for 14 years, and that he believed the industry would take advantage of what the training facility has to offer.

Acknowledging the invaluable input of experts of diverse backgrounds in various panel discussions that held on Tuesday and Wednesday (3rd and 4th December), Engr. Ogbe requested the NCDMB partner, dmg events Limited, “to develop key actionable points” from the PNC Forum “that will guide the industry” as it moves to the next frontier of Nigerian Content implementation.

He assured all industry stakeholders that the Board would continue to collaborate with them to fulfil its mandate as set out in its enabling statute, the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act, 2010.

Earlier in the day, resource persons made presentations on the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) and Marine Accelerator Programme (an initiative of the Oil Producers Trade Section, comprising the international oil companies), as well as a Spotlight on ‘Youth Empowerment Pathways.’

The Senior Trade Policy and Law Expert at the Nigeria AfCFTA Coordination Office, Abuja, Mr. Olusegun Olutayo, who spoke on the topic “AfCFTA: A Panacea for Africa’s Economic Rebirth,” explained the potential benefits of the Agreement by throwing light on its eight Protocols, namely, Trade in Goods, Trade in Services, Rules and Procedures on the Settlement of Disputes, Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs), Investment, Competition Policy, Digital Trade, and Women and Youth in Trade.

According to him, “It is within these Eight Protocols that that prosperity, that integration, that economic revolution, that industrialisation, actually comes,” arguing that “AfCFTA is the way to go.” AfCFTA came into force in 2018 after ratification in Rwanda in July 2028, with the aim of facilitating economic integration, trade and investment among African countries.     

On the Marine Accelerator Programme (MAP), sponsored by the OPTS in conjunction with the NLNG Shipping and Marine Services Limited (NSML) and based in Bonny, Rivers State, the issue, according to the presenter, was: “A Quality Reassessment shows that the challenges in the marine services industry four years ago still persist.” Definite measures were required to make offshore operations in the industry safer through MAP.

The pilot programme, consisting of seven modules, was launched in May 2025 and focused on priority vessels. With the remarkable success of the pilot phase, the OPTS is set to launch the next wave of the marine accelerator training in the first quarter of 2025.

The Spotlight on Youth Empowerment Pathway focused on “The YEP Model: A Unique Approach to Employment,” and was presented by Mr. Tunji Idowu, Executive Director and Managing Trustee, PIND.  

It dwelt on Workforce Development, which highlighted the imperative and strategies for bridging skills gaps, among other things, ecosystem strengthening, government engagement and partnerships, as well as YEP’s future vision-scaling for sustainability. 

Panel discussions in three different sessions dwelt on “Nigerian Content Beyond Borders,” “Nigerian Content from the Grassroots: Community Capacity Building,” and “From Policy to Practice: Strengthening Domestication for Economic Development.”

Under “Nigerian Content Beyond Borders,” sub-topics were “Examining the major barriers hindering cross-border value chains – regulations, documentation, logistics and supply chain, costs, etc.,” “What steps are being taken to enforce standardization? How Can we prove that Nigeria meets global standards,” “What incentives exist to further encourage the export of local capacity and enhance Nigeria’s presence in international markets?”

The panellists were Alhaji Abdulmalik Halilu, Director, Monitoring and Evaluation in NCDMB, Engr. Wole Ogunsanya, Chairman of Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN), Mr. Paul Clement Pankes, Group Head – Chemical Technology, Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), and Dr. Doyle Edeni, Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Blue Seal Energy Group Inc. Moderator was Mrs. Bukola Adubi, Chief Executive Officer, MicCom Cables and Wires Limited, and President, Cable Manufacturers Association of Nigeria.

The second panel discussion, which centred on “Nigerian Content from the Grassroots: Community Capacity Development,” had as subtopics “Assessing the socio-economic impact of local content on host communities,” “What enabling structures have been built by the NCDMB to support the growth of community contractors? What gaps remain?” “Can shared asset responsibility within host communities be structured to achieve increased production levels?” and “How can research-based initiatives increase the impact of CSR on local content implementation?”

Panellists were Dr Ama Ikuru, Director, Corporate Services of NCDMB, Mr. Gorah Adams Ayuba, Deputy Director, Community Development and Education, Federal Ministry of Regional Development, Mr. Charles Epelle, Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited, Mr. Enar Otuks, Oilserv, Mr. Tunji Idowu, PIND, and Engr. Obidike Uzu, Vice Chairman, PETAN, and Managing Director, Global Process Pipeline Services Limited. The moderator was Mr. Olanrewaju Olawuyi, General Manager, Nigerian Content Development, Shell.

The final panel discussion, titled “From Policy to Practice: Strengthening Domestication for Economic Development,” had as subtopics “Outlining the limitations of the local supply chain, what funding and capacity building strategies are required?” “What are the main barriers to entry for manufacturers in the oil and gas space? How can the government develop an enabling environment for local manufacturers to thrive?” “What opportunities have the NCDMB’s R&D initiatives unlocked for the oil and gas sector over the years?” “What local content opportunities exist in the national adoption of CNG utilization? How can indigenous companies tap in?

Panellists were Mr. Ene Ette, General Manager, Planning, Research and Statistics, NCDMB, George Onafowokan, Managing Director, Coleman Cables and Wires, Engr. Tari Mayor-Bright, Sovereign and Subnational Coordinator, Presidential CNG Initiative, Mrs. Iroghama Ogbeifun, Managing Director and CEO, Starz Investments Company Limited, and Ms. Patience Ranami Abah, Director-General, Bayelsa Investment Promotion Agency. The Moderator was Dr. Timi Austen-Peters, Chairman, Dorman Long Engineering Limited.

The PNC 2024, ended on Thursday with site visit by oil and gas industry captains to First Marine and Engineering Services Limited FMES shore base facility in Yenagoa, is the 13th edition of the annual event, which is dedicated to deepening Nigerian Content across the energy sector to support the country’s energy sufficiency goals.