Niger Delta
NCDMB Boss Lauds SNEPCO, Others Over Project Execution
The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, has commended Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo) and the Bayelsa State Government for the completion and inauguration of a Learning Centre and Digital Library at the state-owned Niger Delta University (NDU), Wilberforce Island, Amassoma, in the Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the State.
The Tide learnt that the state-of-the-art facility which boasts three floors–a 2,300 seater Library Building, and a fully equipped digital library, also has a Wi-Fi Lounge, offices, digital educational technology rooms, a 500KVA generator housed within a purpose-built external structure, 500KVA transformer, a dedicated water facility and overhead tank.
Other facilities contained in the infrastructure, according to a statement from the Corporate Communications Directorate of the NCDMB, include a restaurant/recreation hub.
Represented by the Director of Corporate Services of the Board, Dr. Ama Ikuru, the Executive Secretary prefaced his address at the commission ceremony which took place recently with a word of appreciation to the State Government for making the environment conducive for business activities.
“Those of us in the oil and gas industry know that without the enabling environment, there’ll be no project and without projects, there will be no local content growth and no projects like this one.
“The project is part of SNEPCo’s commitment to the Nigerian Content Human Capital Development Initiative.
“I’ll thank Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCO) and by extension, Shell Companies in Nigeria, for showing faith, commitment, and good execution in the delivery of this project.
“I also want to commend the Nigeria’s Upstream Investment Limited for approving the execution of this project”, the NCDMB boss said.
Ogbe continued that, “SNEPCO was not compelled by legislation, nor the force of regulators, nor by community agitation, but they saw the need to support education in Nigeria and worked with their partners to conceptualize and commence the execution of this project.
“The role of the NCDMB played in facilitating the project execution was that when funding for completion of the project became an issue, they sought permission from the NCDMB to complete the project. And so their request was promptly granted, with assurance of ‘our total support”.
He noted that the Niger Delta University was ready to soar above her peers in a digitalization and artificial intelligence-dominated academic world with the completion of the facility, saying research projects will be completed on time, new findings will be published, students will graduate on time and lecturers will have the best materials for their publication and receive their elevation.
“We’re immensely proud of this achievement. In delivering this project, Shell Companies in Nigeria have proven beyond doubt that they are truly partners for Nigeria’s development”, the ES restated.
Also speaking, Managing Director, SNEPCO, Mrs. Elohor Aiboni, said “the learning complex embodies the commitment of her company to improving access to education for all Nigerians, and that the achievement is the culmination of a vision shared by Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), SNEPCo, our co-venture partners, the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board and the Niger Delta University”.
On the wider benefits of the project to the local community and others, Mrs Aiboni noted that sustainable development is at the core of the firm’s mission, saying the construction process incorporated knowledge transfer programmes, empowering 24 individuals from the Niger Delta University with hands-on experience in complex engineering through industrial training opportunities.
“This initiative equips them with a solid foundation for successful future careers”, she said.
In the same vein, Managing Director, Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, and Country Chair, Shell Companies in Nigeria, Mr. Osagie Okunbor, said the history of Shell companies in Nigeria began in Bayelsa State.
He described the Learning Centre and Digital Library as a signature project in the Niger Delta, and thanked industry colleagues for the fruitful collaboration.
Okunborn also reassured that Shell Companies in Nigeria will continue to maintain close partnership with the Bayelsa State Government.
In his own remarks, Deputy Governor of the State, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, thanked all who initiated and completed the facility.
He urged Shell and other oil and gas industry players never to relent in partnering the State, advising the university community to put the facility to the best use.
”For the students, the time to give excuses for your failure is over. And for the lecturers, the time to give excuses for your inability to research has also expired”, the State Deputy Governor said.
The Tide gathered that the construction of the Learning Centre and Digital Library was initiated by SNEPCo in 2007 to enhance educational infrastructure in the country.
Ariwera Ibibo-Howells, Yenagoa
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Stakeholders in Delta State convened in Asaba for a leadership workshop organised by Otdel Health Heritage and Environmental Initiative (OHHEI), focusing on Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and women’s participation in decision-making processes.
OHHEI Project Director, Mr. Peter Olayinka, represented by a consultant, Juliet Obiajulu, urged participants to contribute meaningfully toward advancing women’s leadership and combating GBV across communities in the state.
He said the workshop aimed to strengthen participants’ capacity to influence policies, challenge harmful cultural norms, and reinforce initiatives designed to prevent and respond to GBV.
Olayinka said women often faced bias even when they occupied leadership positions, and stressed that gender diversity improved the quality of decision-making and promoted innovation and accountability in governance structures.
Speaking, the Chairperson of the Association Against Child Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, Mr Eris Jewo-Ibi, identified cultural norms, domestic responsibilities, political resistance, and grassroots barriers as constraints to women’s participation.
Delta State GBV Desk Officer, Mrs. Rosemary Okpuno, emphasised that effective decision-making required women’s perspectives, adding that inclusion remained critical to addressing persistent gender-based challenges.
Voke Angbagh of the Delta State Ministry of Justice outlined penalties for rape and called for the establishment of special courts to handle sexual offences cases.
Angbagh said frequent adjournments delayed justice for survivors, stressing that dedicated sexual offences courts would ensure timely trials and stronger protection for victims in Delta State.
The Tide’s source reports that facilitators identified cultural acceptance of violence, unequal power relations, discrimination, poverty, limited education, and low self-esteem as major drivers of GBV.
They emphasised that violence and exclusion resulted in social, physical and emotional harm, imposed economic costs, reinforced harmful stereotypes, and widened existing gender inequalities.
The source also reports that OHHEI, a local non-profit organisation, focuses on education, health, environment, and social justice, promoting sustainable development initiatives with gender equality at the centre of its interventions.
The Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly Committee on Nutrition and Food Security has called for more private sector investments in agriculture.
The Chairman of the Committee, Mr. Moses Essien, made the call when the committee visited Aviclaire Farms, a private establishment in Usung Idem, Uruk Usoh in Abak Local Government Area.
Essien, who represents Ibiono Ibom in the Assembly, commended the Management of the farm for partnering an NGO, ECEWS, to promote private investment in agriculture.
He commended the partners for adopting climate-smart agriculture initiatives in their operations, adding that such move would promote food security.
“Your interest in using transformative intervention to promote food security is a veritable way of complementing the efforts of the state government,” he said.
The lawmaker continued that adopting practical climate-smart agriculture model would help to generate employment, improve nutrition outcomes, and strengthen food sufficiency.
He further said he was impressed with the strides recorded by the partners, saying, “your investment has created jobs for no fewer than 2,000 youths.
”You are an example of an environment-friendly investor. I urge Akwa Ibom residents to embrace environment-friendly and technology-driven agriculture models,” he said.
Earlier, the Chief Executive Officer, ECEWS, Dr. Andy Eyo, who conducted the committee round the farm, said the collaboration was conceived to demonstrate the viability of climate-smart farming in ensuring food sufficiency.
Eyo said the farm, which commenced operations with four greenhouses, had expanded to 14 within two years, and currently supplying high-quality produce to major markets in Uyo and neighbouring communities.
He said ECEWS was exploring cooperative frameworks to enable rural farmers and women’s groups to adopt greenhouse technology for sustainable livelihoods.
In her remarks, the Chief Executive Officer of Aviclaire Farms, Mrs. Victoria Eyo, said the controlled-environment ensured precision cultivation and consistent yields.
She further said the farm served as a capacity-building centre for students, interns, and agri-business trainees.
The Cross River State Government has suspended all taskforce activities connected to commercial transportation and ticketing across the state.
The State Governor, Bassey Otu, announced the suspension at an emergency stakeholders meeting on Friday in Calabar.
It would be recalled that commercial drivers in Calabar metropolis took to streets on Thursday to protest alleged multiple taxation and extortion by government agencies.
During the protest, the drivers alleged that taskforce groups claiming to represent the state government openly harassed and extorted them.
Represented at the meeting by Ekpenyong Akiba, his Special Adviser on General Duties, Otu said the suspension would subsist pending further review of the situation.
The Governor stated that the state government did not commission anyone to extort drivers in the name of task force.
He urged commercial drivers and other road users to remain law-abiding while government worked out a lasting solution.
On his part, the Chairman, Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, Calabar Metropolis, Mr. Sunday Dennis, expressed optimism that the dialogue would yield positive results.
He said the meeting had provided an opportunity for the aggrieved commercial drivers to present their concerns directly to the state government.
Also speaking, the Chairman, Unified Drivers Association, Mr. Nta Henshaw, described the harassment on drivers as worrisome, and urged the state government to be decisive in resolving the matter.
