The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) held an interactive sensitization workshop with Student Union Government (SUG) leaders from tertiary institutions across Bayelsa State at the Nigerian Content Tower in Yenagoa.
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The session aimed to familiarise the students with NCDMB’s mandate under the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act 2010, highlight ongoing projects in the state, and underscore the critical role of youths in sustainable development.
Representatives from Bayelsa Medical University, Federal University Otuoke, University of Africa Toru-Orua, Federal Polytechnic Ekowe, Isaac Jasper Adaka Boro College of Education, Bayelsa State College of Health Sciences, National Open University Yenagoa Study Centre, and the International Institute of Tourism and Hospitality, among others, attended the event.
Delivering the keynote address titled “The Role of the Student Community in the Sustainable Development of Bayelsa State,” NCDMB General Manager, Human Capital Development, Mr. Esueme Dan Kikile, urged the students to emulate global student activists such as Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr., Major Isaac Adaka Boro, and Malala Yousafzai.
“Each and every one of you should be that instrument to change our state and our country for the better,” Kikile said, emphasizing resilience, determination, and innovation.
Kikile highlighted several NCDMB initiatives targeted at youth empowerment, including the newly launched Nigerian Engineering Olympiad (NEO), an eight-month national engineering innovation and entrepreneurship competition for final-year undergraduate and postgraduate students, with applications closing on 11 January 2026. The top prize, he said, is comparable to that of Nigeria’s most popular reality TV show.
Other programmes include planned industrial training placements for undergraduates with oil and gas service companies, a three-year graduate internship with Renaissance Africa Energy Limited, and the Oil and Gas Field Readiness Training Programme aimed at equipping 10,000 youths with high-demand skills ahead of major upcoming projects.
In a separate presentation, General Manager, Corporate Communications, Dr. Obinna Ezeobi, traced the transformation of Nigeria’s oil and gas sector since the 2010 NOGICD Act, which curbed capital flight and created opportunities for Nigerians.
Ezeobi listed NCDMB’s landmark projects in Bayelsa, including the 17-storey Nigerian Content Tower, the nearly completed NCDMB Conference Hotel (the state’s first five-star facility), the 10 MW Elebele power plant supplying the Tower and Government House, the Nigerian Oil and Gas Parks Scheme (NOGaPS) at Emeyal, and the ongoing Oloibiri Oil and Gas Museum and Research Centre.
He also revealed advanced plans for the Brass Shipyard to support the NLNG Train-7 project and urged students and host communities to embrace dialogue rather than disruption when addressing grievances with investors.
Students raised questions on registration on the NOGIC Joint Qualification System (JQS), opportunities for non-engineering graduates, NCDMB’s departmental structure, and the poor access road to the Oloibiri Museum site.
Closing the event, NCDMB Corporate Communications supervisor, Mr. Teleola Oyeleke, thanked the students and advised them to “know something about everything and everything about something.”
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