China Inspired Nigeria’s Local Content Creation- Jonathan

Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, has expressed his sense of fulfilment at the enactment of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act, 2010, and the many benefits that have accrued to Nigeria at the national and community levels since the emergence of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), that has over time assumed the critical role of business enabler.

He recalled the enthusiasm and promptness with which he signed the NOGICD Bill into law in April 2010, stating that the inspiration came from a visit to China as head of a trade delegation to that country during his days as Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State (December 2005-May 2007). 

“Almost everything used in the Chinese oil industry was sourced locally,” he disclosed, noting how China became a major global player in oil and gas after the massive discovery of crude oil at the Daqing Oilfield in the northeastern Heilongjiang Province in 1959, three years after a similar discovery in Otuabagi, OloibiriDistrict, of present-day Ogbia Local Government Area in Bayelsa State.

He stated in an opening address at the SweetCrude Dialogue 2026, themed “Through the Python’s Eye: 70 Years of Oil and Gas Production,” that the China experience set him wondering why the case of Nigeria in that sector was so completely different,” he reflected, as he returned to Nigeria, profoundly upset over the enormous economic losses arising from near-total dependence on foreign expertise, equipment, machinery, production inputs, and technology, among other things.

He commended the NCDMB for its successes and the organisersof the Dialogue, De Mangrove Conversations, led by Mr. Biobele Da-Wariboko, for the concept and the zeal that had brought them thus far. “Bringing people from all walks of life to have a conversation on the oil and gas industry is critical,” he noted, pointing out that community issues and what he termed ‘state dilemma’ demand careful attention even as the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), 2020, has made appreciable impact.

For his part, the Executive Secretary of the NCDMB, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, represented by the Director, Monitoring and Evaluation Directorate, Barr. Esueme Dan Kikile, noted that the theme of the Dialogue provided “a vital vintage point to evaluate our historical journey, analyze our current milestones, and chart an ambitious path for our energy future.”

He commended the former President for decisive action in bringing the NOGICD Act and the NCDMB into reality, pointing out that in pursuit of its core mandate – “to supervise, coordinate, and monitor compliance with local content metrics, deliberately building domestic capacities, while ensuring that a significant portion of industry spend is retained in Nigeria” – the Board has grown local content participation to 61 per cent in 2026, up from less than five per cent in 2010. 

He said the Board’s strict enforcement of its Human Capacity Development Initiative (HCDI) Guidelines has resulted in every major industry project allocating dedicated resources toward training of Nigerian engineers, geologists, technicians, and seafarers, and that its flagship “60-40” Graduate Training Models and global technical certifications to specialized vocational training for host communities has “institutionalized a continuous pipeline of industry-ready professionals.”

On other key projects and accomplishments, both completed and ongoing, the NCDMB boss listed the iconic 17-storey NCDMB Nigerian Content Tower (NCT); Oloibiri Museum and Research Centre (OMRC); Nigerian Oil and Gas Park Scheme (NOGaPS), an industrial park at Emeyal I in Ogbia local Government Area,and another at Odukpani, Cross River State; gas processing infrastructure in the Gbarain hub in Bayelsa State for reliable feedstock distribution to power industrialization in Bayelsa State and Niger Delta region; Polaku Gas Project Footprint, and the Brass Shipyard and Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Fertiliser Project Alignment.

Others include the NCDMB Back-to-the-Creek Initiative, which is focused on taking development, empowerment, and opportunities directly to the grassroots, where oil and gas activities have the most impact.

According to the NCDMB boss, “By anchoring these transformative initiatives, human capital development, and high-level investments” in Bayelsa State, “the Board is transitioning the cradle of Nigeria’s oil history from a mere extraction zone into an active centre of commercial, technological, and industrial value retention.”           

In a goodwill message, the Bayelsa State governor, Senator Douyi Diri, represented by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Peter Akpe, stated that for a gathering to examine 70 years of the oil and gas industry in Nigeria, there could not have been a better place for the event than where it all began, that is, Bayelsa State territory. He commended De Mangrove Conversations, the organisers, whom he described as distinguished writers, researchers, and professionals of the Niger Delta. 

In a related message, Delta State governor Sheriff F.O. Oborevwori, represented by his Chief of Staff, Prince Johnson Erijo, challenged all stakeholders to strive at all times to fulfill public expectations, stating that as evaluation of progress in the oil and gas industry was being undertaken, there was need for leaders to renew their commitment to host communities.  

For his part, the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), represented by his Chief of Staff, Mr. Julius Oworibo, said the Dialogue should remind the audience “where we are coming from, where we are now – [achievements and benefits that have accrued to oil-and gas-producing communities] – and where we are striving to be.”      

In a keynote address, Professor Ibibia Lucky Worika, of the Centre of Advanced Law Research at Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, observed that for 70 years “oil has defined our economy, influenced our politics, shaped our foreign relations, financed our development, fuelled conflicts, inspired innovations, and transformed our place in the global energy landscape.”

He pointed out that the Niger Delta has borne the burden of oil and gas exploitation for 70 years and that “Entire ecosystems [have] suffered irreversible damage.” Given that background, he asserted that “Environmental justice is not an optional policy aspiration; it is a constitutional, moral and developmental imperative.”

Earlier in a welcome address, the convener of De Mangrove Conversations, Mr. Biobele Da-Wariboko, said the group emerged out of the need “to ensure that Niger Delta’s enormous resources and contributions to Nigeria’s development are not swept into historical oblivion by the swift currents of ethno-religious and hegemonic politics ravaging our nation’s polity.”