Emmanuel Nlewedum, Port Harcourt
Emphasis on collaboration and partnership remain a driving force for the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, in its quest to facilitate the rapid and sustainable development of the Niger Delta region.
Over the last two years, the Commission has organised a Budget Conference and the Partners for Sustainable Development (PSD) Forum to provide a platform for aggregating and synthesising ideas and strategies for development.
The 2025 Budget Conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, comes on the heels of a similar one held in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, last year. What is now an annual event gives key stakeholders, policymakers, and development partners the opportunity to discuss strategic plans for the growth of Nigeria’s oil-rich region. It is also a forum for reviewing the budget priorities of the NDDC and ensuring the effective allocation of resources for infrastructure, environmental sustainability, and economic empowerment initiatives.
By facilitating engagements with government agencies, private sector leaders, and other key stakeholders, this forum emphasises the need for collaborative approaches to address socio-economic challenges, strengthen investment opportunities, and advance sustainable solutions for the Niger Delta region.
The stakeholders’ engagement strategy has shown that to create a Niger Delta that is investment-friendly and capable of generating economic prosperity, all hands must be on deck. There is a recognition that the task of achieving this goal cannot be left for the NDDC alone, but must involve all development partners, including the private sector.
The socio-economic transformation of the Niger Delta is too complex to be left to one or two development agencies. This is because undoing the damage wrought by decades of neglect and injustice requires partnership and synergy. The NDDC Act recognises this mandate and has defined the NDDC as a facilitator for the development process that involves a combination of all relevant stakeholders in the region.
It stands to reason, therefore, that stakeholders periodically gather to confront the challenge of rescuing the Niger Delta. It is only logical to pull all resources together to confront the injustice and inequality that have ruled the lives of the people in Nigeria’s oil basin.
Undoubtedly, the Niger Delta region deserves a lot more than it is getting now. The oil companies operating in the region created an oasis of wealth in a desert of poverty in the past, a situation that needs to change for the region to leapfrog into the modern era, where the availability of basic infrastructure is taken for granted.
In response to the need for coordinated efforts, the NDDC established the Partners for Sustainable Development (PSD) Forum as a clearinghouse. This vital organ brings together representatives from federal and state governments of oil-bearing states, youth and women leaders, traditional rulers, the organised private sector, civil society, the mass media, and international development agencies such as the UNDP and the World Bank. Their primary function is to ensure that the developmental activities and budget processes across agencies and project providers in the Niger Delta are synchronised.
The conference in Port Harcourt was attended by representatives from the nine states of the Niger Delta Region, international oil and gas companies (IOCs), the Ministry of Regional Development, Traditional Rulers of Oil Mineral-Producing Communities (TROMPCON), Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), and youth groups.
At the end of the conference, the stakeholders resolved that the NDDC must ensure that the funds allocated in its 2025 budget are realistic, adequate, and in line with current economic realities, to ensure that conceptualised projects are completed for the benefit of the communities.
They emphasised the importance of handing over projects to communities, noting: “To avoid cases of non-utilisation or under-utilisation of projects, all completed projects should be properly handed over to the benefitting communities to ensure sustainability.”
The stakeholders further resolved that the NDDC should improve on its maintenance culture, stating: “The Board and Management should keep up the pace with the Light Up Niger Delta project and put in place a maintenance plan for the solar light projects across the region.”
According to a communiqué, based on the presentations and syndicate sessions at the conference, it was agreed that “the NDDC should explore partnerships with the private sector, leverage climate and development funds from bilateral and multilateral sources to fund projects.”
The stakeholders proposed that sufficient funding should be allocated to both legacy and ongoing projects to ensure their timely completion.
They agreed to support the current Board and Management of NDDC in their efforts to ensure that the region experiences the development it deserves, rather than clamouring for a change in administration.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the NDDC Governing Board, Mr. Chiedu Ebie, stated that the Commission had commenced implementing a new governance structure, prepared by KPMG, a reputable global business consultancy, to ensure accountability and effective performance.
He stated that the new institutional culture was founded on sound ethics and good corporate governance, noting that the NDDC was committed to strengthening its corporate governance system and enhancing its internal processes.
Addressing the forum, the NDDC Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, highlighted the Commission’s renewed focus on partnerships and collaboration. He noted: “The budget is for the people of the Niger Delta. A needs assessment is periodically conducted to ensure that projects meet the needs of the people. For example, Operation Light Up the Niger Delta is born out of a need for improved illumination in the communities of the Niger Delta.
“We are building strong collaborations in both the private and public sectors to deliver meaningful and lasting infrastructure,” he said, citing ongoing work with the Nigeria Liquified Natural Gas, NLNG, on the Kaa-Ataba road and bridge. The project, he revealed, is the longest bridge in Rivers State and is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
The NDDC Executive Director, Finance and Administration, Alabo Boma Iyaye, who set the tone for the conference, emphasised that the 2025 Budget Conference was geared towards stakeholder participation and restructuring of the Commission’s entire budgeting process to achieve a realistic and implementable budget.
Echoing this, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on NDDC, Senator Asuquo Ekpeyong, noted the Senate’s commitment to ensuring that the 2025 Budget reflects the needs and aspirations of the people of the region.
He stated: “I applaud the NDDC leadership for convening this crucial budget conference with all of the key players in our region. It takes dedicated work and collaboration to address the Region’s problems.
“The leadership of the National Assembly is committed to making sure that the 2025 Budget represents the needs of our people, particularly now that we have a stable, goal-oriented NDDC.”
Representing traditional institutions, the Orodje of Okpe Kingdom, King Felix Mujakperuo, called for a seamless handover of community-based projects to ensure that they were properly maintained.
In her keynote address, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Regional Development, Dr Mary Ogbe, commended the Commission for aligning its budgeting process with the provisions of extant laws.
Commending the NDDC for convening key stakeholders to collaborate on the 2025 budget, she stated, “This conference reflects a collective commitment to the sustainable development of the Niger Delta. It presents an atmosphere conducive to achieving an effective budgeting system for the NDDC, in line with the “Renewed Hope Agenda” of the government of President Ahmed Bola Tinubu.
“As members of the Regional Development Commission, we do not merely oversee budgets; we shape destinies. If you are not seeing yourself as such before now, I plead with you to begin to see yourself as a custodian of your regional growth, guardian of its resources and promoter of its future.”
“How we spend reflects what we believe in. Budgets are more than financial instruments; they reveal, in clear terms, the values we prioritise and the future we aspire to build. A mirror of our values and a map for the future,” she said.
Ogbe emphasised the need for innovative, transparent, and participatory budgeting practices to ensure that available resources are maximally deployed to meet the region’s most pressing needs.
