NCDMB Challenges Anambra: Demand Your Share of Oil and Gas Benefits

A group photograph of Stakeholders at
at the NCDMB interactive with journalists in Anambra State on Thursday

By Titus Eleweke

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has challenged the Anambra State Government to formally approach the agency with its demands and proposals for greater participation in, and benefits from, Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.

The board said the Anambra State Government had never formally written to it to request support or present its specific needs in the oil and gas sector, urging the state to take advantage of the opportunities available through the agency.

The General Manager, Corporate Communications of NCDMB, Dr. Obinna Ezeobi, made this known on Thursday at the Nigerian Content Media Stakeholders Workshop for Editors and Journalists in Anambra State, held at Golden Tulip, Awka.

Ezeobi was responding to allegations by the Anambra State Commissioner for Information and Value Reorientation, Dr. Law Mefor, that the state was not adequately benefiting from the oil and gas industry despite being one of the oil-producing states in Nigeria.

According to Ezeobi, the state government should formally communicate its concerns and requests to the board rather than wait for the agency to approach it.

He explained that the workshop was organised to engage media stakeholders in the South-East, create greater awareness of the opportunities available through the NCDMB and encourage increased participation by Nigerians, particularly those in oil-producing communities.

Ezeobi said the workshop was one of the platforms through which the board engaged key stakeholders to familiarise them with the concept and requirements of Nigerian local content in the oil and gas industry.

“This is to make you conscious of the oil and gas industry and the fact that Anambra is one of the oil-producing states in the country. By our records, it is the third-largest oil-producing state in the South-East.
“Anambra State has a lot of potential in the oil and gas industry, and it is important for journalists to have a good understanding of the sector so they can educate the people on the need to take advantage of the available opportunities.
“Nigerian content requires a lot of local engagement, and the media is critical to achieving this. The media has played a significant role in promoting Nigerian local content in the oil and gas industry,” he said.

The NCDMB spokesman noted that many government policies had failed to achieve their intended objectives because of poor communication, stressing that the media had a crucial role to play in ensuring public awareness, accountability and effective implementation of policies.

“We are doing this to build the capacity of journalists to help monitor compliance. We need the media to help promote Nigerian local content, and we want the media in Anambra to set the agenda for local content development.
“Ndi Anambra need to engage in the oil and gas industry and participate actively. Everybody should be part of it.
“We want the media to promote Nigerian local content so that the people of Anambra will participate actively, enhance productivity, improve relationships and hold operators accountable,” Ezeobi said.

He urged journalists to familiarise themselves with the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, 2010, and educate citizens and government officials on its provisions and the opportunities it offers.

Ezeobi also disclosed that numerous opportunities were emerging in the industry, particularly in training, skills development and employment, and encouraged young people to position themselves to benefit.

“We need to understand the oil and gas industry and the opportunities it offers for employment,” he added.

Providing figures on oil production in the South-East, Ezeobi said Imo State is the region’s highest producer, with an estimated 17,000 barrels per day, followed by Abia State with 11,000 barrels per day, while Anambra ranked third with 3,000 barrels per day.

Also speaking, the Director of Planning, Research and Statistics at the NCDMB, Mr. Omomehin Ajimijaye, said the board’s programmes and interventions were designed to benefit all Nigerians, irrespective of their geographical location or ethnic background.

He called on Nigerians to work together as brothers and sisters to maximise the opportunities available in the oil and gas industry.

Ajimijaye explained that the NCDMB operated under two principal mandates: developing local capacity and capabilities without compromising standards and promoting Nigerian content, as well as monitoring compliance with and enforcing the provisions of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, 2010.

“Every contract in the oil and gas industry must have Nigerian local content.
“Whenever we receive information that foreign expertise is being engaged in situations where local capacity could be utilised, we investigate the matter to establish what happened.
“We encourage the engagement of Nigerians in the sector, and one of the most effective ways of informing people about the available opportunities is through the media,” he said.

He added that the board monitored and evaluated oil and gas projects to ensure compliance with Nigerian local content requirements and deepen local participation and value creation across the industry.

On capacity development, Ajimijaye said the NCDMB was making concerted efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s human capital through training and skills acquisition programmes aimed at preparing citizens to occupy technical and professional positions in the sector.

“We are building capacity to ensure that Nigerians can work in the industry. Thousands of Nigerians are being trained to fill positions that require specialised expertise,” he said.

He encouraged young people to follow the NCDMB’s activities on its official social media platforms, particularly Facebook, and regularly apply for relevant training programmes and employment opportunities in the industry.
Ajimijaye urged Nigerians to abandon the perception that opportunities in the oil and gas sector were reserved for a select group of people, noting that many qualified citizens failed to apply because they assumed they were not eligible.

He also called for greater involvement of host communities in oil and gas operations, stressing that local communities should not leave all matters relating to the industry in the hands of operators.

“People should be interested in the activities taking place in the various oil and gas communities rather than leaving everything to the operators alone. The local communities need to be integrated into the oil and gas industry,” he stated.

Speaking at the event, the Anambra State Commissioner for Information and Value Reorientation, Dr. Law Mefor, said the state ought to be feeling the impact of oil and gas exploration but had yet to benefit adequately from the industry’s activities.

Mefor called for a critical assessment of the extent to which Anambra had benefited from its oil and gas resources, expressing concern that the state appeared to have been left out of key national development plans for the sector.

“It is sad that Anambra is sitting on oil and gas, yet the state is excluded from the Nigerian Gas Master Plan,” he said.

He argued that the recent legal framework permitting states to generate and distribute electricity had made it even more important for Anambra to gain access to its oil and gas resources to support industrial development, improve energy supply and stimulate economic growth.

The commissioner urged the NCDMB delegation to explore the state and assess the development initiatives being undertaken by the administration of Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo, particularly those aimed at transforming Anambra into an industrial hub.

He assured the visiting officials of the state government’s willingness to sustain engagement with the board beyond the workshop, adding that the state was ready to cooperate in identifying opportunities that would improve its participation in the oil and gas industry.
“Anambra State will cooperate beyond this event. I would like to take you to one or two places for relaxation in the state,” Mefor said.