We’re regulators, not an interventionist agency – NCDMB
The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, NCDMB, has emphasized that it is not an interventionist agency but a Federal Government body established to promote and enforce local content in the oil and gas sector by developing Nigerian capabilities in the industry.
The Board explained that its mandate is to ensure that Nigerians take the lead in employment and contracts within the country’s oil and gas sector.
It also stated that the NCDMB regulates expatriate quota applications by reviewing and endorsing requests from foreign oil and gas companies before final approval by the Ministry of Interior to ensure compliance with Nigerian Content laws.
Speaking on Thursday during an engagement with Niger Delta media stakeholders and youth groups, the General Manager, Corporate Communications at NCDMB, Obinna Ezeobi, said the people of the Niger Delta should not expect the Board to go beyond its defined mandate.
Ezeobi noted that the NCDMB’s responsibilities are different from those of interventionist agencies but assured that the Board remains fully committed to carrying out its mandate.
He also appealed to the media to educate the public on the Board’s responsibilities, combat false narratives, and promote issues that contribute to Nigeria’s economic growth.
Ezeobi said, “We are not an interventionist agency. So do not expect us to do those things that, I don’t want to call their names, so for you.
“We will do the ones within our mandate. So, I know we are your cocoa farm, but this cocoa farm is different.
“This cocoa farm is not the typical cocoa farm. So we will do our cocoa in the way we can. Please understand that. We are not saying we will not do what we do, but not in that way because our mandate is different.”
He further urged the media to act as gatekeepers against misinformation, saying, “Gate keep those things and help us set agenda about what truly is local content and the opportunities that lie ahead for all of us.”
Highlighting some of the Board’s achievements, the Director of Corporate Services, Abdulmalik Halilu, disclosed that the Nigeria LNG Train 7 project, which is almost 90 percent completed, has generated about 8,000 jobs for Nigerians compared to 500 expatriates, describing it as “a remarkable growth in terms of our capacity.”
He added, “Nigerian companies have also been engaged as main contractors or contractors. 1,400 vendors are working on the Train 7 project.
“Galvanizing plants was established at the back of the Train 7 project. PPEs, over 14,000 on the back of Train 7. 100 Nigerians were engaged.
“The importance of this project is that it has multi-sectoral application.”
We’re regulators, not an interventionist agency – NCDMB
