NCDMB Charges Anambra Journalists on Oil, Gas Opportunities, Accountability

.Joins Renaissance to train 60 Nigerians in critical oil, gas technical skills

Kasie Abone and Sylvester Idowu in Warri

The media must take a more proactive role in promoting Nigeria’s local content policy by highlighting opportunities, monitoring compliance with relevant laws and examining the effects of oil and gas operations on indigenous businesses and host communities, the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has stated.

Also, NCDMB in collaboration with Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited launched a 12-month training programme at Nigeria Machine Tools Limited, Osogbo, Osun State.

Speaking at a one-day capacity-building workshop for media stakeholders at Golden Tulip Hotel, Awka, on Thursday, October 15, 2026, the Board’s General Manager, Corporate Communications, Dr. Obinna Ezeobi, described journalists as vital partners in implementing the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act, 2010.

Ezeobi said the workshop was intended to enhance journalists’ knowledge of the NCDMB’s mandate, programmes and interventions, while providing them with the skills needed to report accurately and effectively on the technical aspects of the oil and gas industry.

He urged journalists to utilise their platforms to promote opportunities open to Nigerian businesses and professionals, increase awareness of government initiatives and ensure that industry operators complied with local content obligations.

According to him, the advancement of Nigerian content required continuous cooperation among industry operators, government agencies, businesses, host communities, professionals, academic institutions and the media.

He said the NCDMB had regularly interacted with media organisations nationwide because effective communication and stakeholder involvement were essential to the success of public policies.

Ezeobi noted that the Board’s Nigerian Content 10-Year Strategic Roadmap, launched in 2017, listed collaboration and stakeholder engagement as key factors in achieving the goals of the local content policy.

He clarified that the policy extended beyond Nigerian participation in oil and gas operations, explaining that its wider aim was to build indigenous expertise, reinforce local manufacturing, increase industrial capacity and retain greater economic value within the country.

He also revealed that the Board had been rated Nigeria’s foremost federal agency in the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council’s rankings for four successive years, from 2022 to 2025.

The Board stated that well-informed and investigative media reporting was crucial to ensuring that the gains of Nigeria’s local content policy produced concrete economic benefits for citizens, especially in states with substantial oil and gas resources.

The workshop was the first edition of the NCDMB’s annual media engagement programme in the South-East since the initiative began in the Niger Delta in 2019.

Presenting an overview of the Board’s mandate and accomplishments, the Director of Planning, Research and Statistics, Mr. Silas Omomehin Ajimijaye, said the NCDMB was charged with building Nigerian capacity while ensuring that operators adhered to the provisions of the NOGICD Act.

Representing the Executive Secretary, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, Ajimijaye stressed that the advantages of local content should reach beyond oil-producing communities and the Niger Delta to Nigerians throughout the country.

He advised entrepreneurs, job seekers and other potential industry participants to enrol on the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Joint Qualification System portal, where relevant industry opportunities and qualification procedures could be accessed.

Ajimijaye listed some of the Board’s interventions as facilitating more than 15 million man-hours of training, assisting start-ups towards commercialisation, issuing Nigerian Content Equipment Certificates and creating the $350 million Nigerian Content Intervention Fund.

He added that the Board was carrying out training initiatives for thousands of Nigerians in 10 key areas regarded as vital to the continued development and sustainability of the oil and gas industry.

The programmes, he explained, were designed to build indigenous capacity, enhance access to industry opportunities and enable Nigerian businesses and professionals to compete successfully in the sector.

The NCDMB officials stressed that journalists needed to understand these initiatives and the regulatory structure guiding the industry so they could give the public reliable information and assess whether the goals of the local content policy were being fulfilled.

The workshop also highlighted the importance of Anambra State converting its natural resource wealth into industrial expansion, job creation and better economic prospects.

The state Commissioner for Information and Value Reformation, Dr Law Mefor, who represented Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo, said Anambra possessed an estimated 30 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves, accounting for approximately 15 per cent of Nigeria’s total reserves.

Mefor voiced concern that the state had not maximised the benefits of its gas resources and had previously been excluded from gas development programmes.

He said the Soludo administration was committed to making Anambra a hub for gas-based industrial development, adding that proper utilisation of the resource could drive industrial growth, aid power generation and create jobs.

He praised the NCDMB for taking the capacity-building programme to the South-East and expressed hope that increased media participation would improve public knowledge of opportunities within the industry.

Mefor also pledged to present the workshop’s message to the governor.

The NCDMB described Anambra as a strategic venue for the engagement because of its status as an oil-producing state, its estimated initial output of about 3,000 barrels of crude oil daily and the presence of leading indigenous oil and gas firms.

Notable indigenous operators linked to the state include Oilserv, established by Engr. Emeka Okwuosa, and the Nestoil Group, founded by Dr Ernest Nnaemeka Azudialu-Obiejesi.

The Board said the state’s increasing importance in the industry made it necessary for journalists to understand the opportunities available to its people and businesses through the local content framework.

In addition to policy education, the workshop included sessions aimed at improving journalists’ professional abilities, strengthening their reporting of complicated industry matters and helping them produce engaging stories capable of competing for national journalism awards.

The programme also explored the connection between Nigerian content and community development, emphasising the need for media reports to link industry operations with their broader economic and social effects.

Participants praised the Board for bringing the programme to the South-East and requested continued capacity-building activities to improve journalists’ knowledge of the oil and gas sector.

The event was attended by senior NCDMB officials, including the General Manager, Zonal Coordination, Mr. Ifeanyi Ukoha; Assistant Manager, Corporate Communications, Mr Teddy Bai; and Senior Supervisor, Media Relations, Mr. Ifeanyi Nwokemodo, Dr. Nelson Obinna Omenugha as well as media professionals from Anambra State.

The workshop concluded with a fresh appeal for closer cooperation between the Board and the media to encourage informed public discussion, reveal opportunities, improve accountability and ensure that Nigeria’s local content policy produces measurable gains for indigenous enterprises and communities.

NCDMB collaboration with Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited will equip 60 young Nigerians with specialised expertise in oil and gas engineering as well as other critical technical skills, fostering a new generation of industry-ready professionals.

The programme is on the back of the Nigerian Content Human Capacity Development (NCHCD) Training Programme for Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited’s EPU Phase 2 Gas Development Project.

It is designed to equip participants with advanced technical expertise with the curriculum spanning engineering design, fitter machining, conventional machine tool operations, programming, computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM), electrical and mechanical maintenance, and document control.

Structured over 12 months, the programme combines six months of intensive classroom instruction with six months of supervised on-the-job training in reputable companies.

Graduates are expected to earn internationally recognized certifications upon completion.

At the official launch held at Nigeria Machine Tools Limited, Osogbo, Osun State, NCDMB’s Director of Capacity Building, Mr. Abayomi Bamidele, reaffirmed the Board’s commitment to bridging critical technical skills gaps in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.

Represented by Mr. Tare Bufazi, Assistant Manager, Human Capacity Development, Bamidele described the initiative as a strategic intervention to address manpower shortages and prepare Nigerians for meaningful participation across the oil and gas value chain.

“The importance of this programme cannot be overstated,” he noted, revealing that the 60 trainees—comprising 33 graduates and 27 vocational trainees—would undergo specialised training tailored to industry needs.

He emphasised that NCDMB’s mission extends beyond promoting local participation to building the technical capabilities required to sustain the sector. Human capacity development, he stressed, is central to strengthening local content, creating opportunities, and advancing the federal government’s industrialisation agenda.

Bamidele urged participants to approach the programme with discipline and commitment, highlighting that it offers more than certificates—it builds practical competence and professional experience for long-term careers.

He also acknowledged the contributions of Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, Seflam SGL, and Nigeria Machine Tools, whose collaboration made the initiative possible.

Speaking on behalf of Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, Mr. Richard Oyiborhor, Interface and Integration Manager for the NLNG Supply Project, reiterated the company’s dedication to nurturing Nigerian talent and strengthening local capabilities.

He commended NCDMB’s leadership in advancing Nigerian content and praised the partnership with Seflam SGL and Nigeria Machine Tools as a vital step in developing the nation’s industrial workforce.

Senior Manager, Business Interface at Seflam SGL, Mrs Bisola Agboluaje, congratulated the trainees and traced the programme’s origins to 2024, when NCDMB approved the training plans. She described the initiative as a forward-looking investment in Nigeria’s technical talent pool.

Nigeria Machine Tools’ Chief Operating Officer, Ms. Obehi Ojeagha, welcomed the participants and lauded the collaboration.

She emphasised the institution’s 46-year legacy in supporting Nigeria’s industrial development and expressed confidence that the trainees would acquire the skills, discipline, and experience needed to contribute meaningfully to the oil and gas sector.