NDCCITMA tasks Niger Delta region to improve GDP

The Niger Delta Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Trade and Agriculture (NDCCITMA), has urged the Niger Delta region to improve its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by exploring new development strategies.

The Secretary of the Board of the NDCCITMA, Mr Solomon Edebiri, made the remark during the Niger Delta Business Roundtable meeting organised by the chamber in Port Harcourt on Thursday.
Edebiri said the meeting, themed, “Creating a New Development Agenda for the Niger Delta Region,” was apt, and urged the region to close the gap of about N25 trillion to measure up with South-West in GDP.
He explained that while the South-West currently led with an estimated GDP of about N59 trillion, the Niger Delta followed with about N34 trillion.
He stressed the need to bridge the gap by unlocking the region’s vast untapped potential, noting that sustained economic growth would significantly reduce unemployment and curb militancy in the region.
Edebiri also highlighted the region’s underperformance in export activity, noting that while Lagos records about 200 million dollars in annual air exports, Port Harcourt accounts for just about 20,000 dollars.
‘’The chamber aims to redefine the business direction of the Niger Delta by mentoring and supporting enterprises, while promoting dialogue to address regulatory, infrastructure and security challenges,’’ he said.
He added that the meeting would identify emerging opportunities beyond oil and gas, improve access to finance for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and enhance the ease of doing business in the region.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Board of NDCCITMA, Mr Idare Gogo Ogan, called for a strategic shift in the region’s development approach, warning that reliance on politically driven narratives had failed to deliver meaningful economic progress.
Ogan said that the region had, for decades, been discussing in politically familiar but economically insufficient terms such as derivation, militancy, ecological damage and amnesty, with little impact on sustainable growth.
He stressed that agitation and restiveness could no longer guarantee development outcomes, urging stakeholders to adopt deliberate strategies that would harness the region’s vast human and natural endowments.
“This time, we must deploy intellect, collaboration and clear economic thinking. The legacy we owe our children will come from deliberate and measurable actions,” he said.
Ogan noted that the nine Niger Delta states account for about one-fifth of Nigeria’s economy, making the region critical to the country’s external earnings, gas reserves, maritime access and environmental sustainability.
He lamented that such endowments had not translated into productivity, value chain depth or investor confidence.
‘’The major challenge is not the absence of opportunities but the weak conversion of such opportunities into bankable and financeable projects.

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“The region must distinguish between near-term bankable projects, medium-term strategic platforms and long-term transformational ambitions.
“Security, power, logistics and project preparation remain the operating system of the regional economy and must be prioritised,” he said.
Ogan said that the roundtable was conceived as a working forum to move stakeholders beyond broad declarations to practical commitments.
He urged states and institutions to clearly define their comparative advantages, infrastructure gaps and reform priorities within the next twelve to twenty four months.
In a speech, the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Dr Samuel Ogbuku, urged the region’s stakeholders to invest at home and drive development from within.
Ogbuku noted that Niger Delta region was thriving in oil and gas, banking and other sectors. They do not lack capital or capable individuals, but lacks the commitment to develop the region.
He called for a shift in mindset, urging greater patriotism and intentional reforms to reposition the Niger Delta as an attractive investment destination.

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(NAN)