There is no better time than now — for security is always a current issue demanding urgent attention — to hold conversations on how we can, working together within a shared vision and with a common agenda, to boost security in Nigeria, but particularly in the Niger Delta region. The choice of the beautiful city of Uyo, for this congregation, is not lost on all who genuinely desire peace and security as a foundation for, as well as product of, development.

It is common knowledge that economic and social development are intricately tied to security and system stability. As Kofi Annan, former Secretary General of the United Nations, once reflected: “We will not enjoy security without development. We will not enjoy development without security. And we will not enjoy either without respect for human rights.” Without respect for our common good and humanity.

As we have always said at the Niger Delta Development Commission, we cannot achieve our mandate of sustainable regional development if we do not have peace and security in the Niger Delta region. Insecurity impacts negatively on the society because it affects our families, our businesses, governance, our livelihoods, our lifestyle and the enjoyment of its benefits. It is a mutual and collective call to service, because it involves and affects everyone.

The deterioration in security within the region over the years has directly led to:

• Relocation of businesses
• Higher operating and investment costs
• Lower tax revenue base
• High unemployment
• High crime rate and
• Low life quality

Over the years, NDDC has made strategic contributions towards addressing insecurity and improving the socio-economic landscape of the region. Of great importance is the continued, mutually-beneficial collaboration between the Commission and all security institutions in Nigeria, as well as our contributions to the constant efforts at improving regional peace and security.

These include:

Efforts, led by Mr. President, involving NDDC, MNDA, PAP, MPR, Ministry of Environment and PANDEF, which succeeded in reducing the pipeline vandalisation of 2015 that almost crippled the economy. NDDC in particular provided logistics support and funding for various strategic engagements.

The Strategic Implementation Workplan for Development of the Niger Delta (SIWP) involving all the afore-mentioned agencies, who are combining their budgets for the period 2017–2020 towards:

• Improving of security
• Developing of thousands of SMEs within the region
• Creating of one million jobs over five years
• Improving social services, and
• Providing educational support and massive infrastructure development.
• Continuous provision of logistics support to Security agencies. A few include:
• Supply of gun boats (nine) to Marine Police
• Training of 200 Marine Police in conjunction with the NN
• Provision of accommodation and welfare support for NPF and JTF personnel, and
• Supply of numerous vehicles and telecommunications gadgets.

The net result of these interventions is apparent in the drastic reduction in pipeline vandalisation and consequent increase in oil production and government revenues. This is simply one step in a series of steps being taken by government to lay the foundation for lasting peace, improved security and socio-economic development of the Niger Delta Region.

I commend the Inspector General of Police for making the conversation possible, and for re-energising all of us to continue to work towards peace, security and the sustainable development of the Niger Delta region, in particular, and Nigeria, in general.

It is only when we are able to achieve these for the society that we are able to enjoy peace within us, as well as security and development for our families and communities.

Speech delivered at the Police Security Summit and Public Lecture for South South in Uyo

Salutations

Let me start by congratulating the leadership and members of Akwa Ibom Association in the United States on your 30th Anniversary. Thank you for coming together these past 30 years to promote the best interest of Akwa Ibom State.

Thank you for the honour, responsibility and trust placed on me by your invitation to speak at this august event. Responsibility demands that I look back at the road we have travelled as a people and propose a radical pathway to a new destination: Greatness. Inviting me to stand here, in the assembly of some of Akwa Ibom’s best, is a statement that I have earned your trust. I will not betray that trust. Not today. Not tomorrow. Not in the days to follow…

I have been asked to speak on Revamping our Schools; Educating our Future. But I will ask your permission to tweak this significantly. At the Business Session yesterday, you had the opportunity to hear about investment opportunities in the Nigeria Delta in our strategic presentation titled, Niger Delta of Opportunities.

The World We Live

We live in rapidly changing times where the definition of schools and learning has shifted radically; where brick and mortar schools are being challenged by borderless learning, and educational curricula must change rapidly in response to the current dynamics. The Internet has become the world’s number one classroom, without walls and boundaries; an internet-enabled device is a school of incomparable value. Today, we live amongst people who carry degrees and certificates from schools and institutions in geographies they are yet to step on.

So permit me to title this Strategic Disruption: Raising Innovation Champions.

A few years ago, I came across a short but very interesting video, Did You Know 2014. It was an eye opener: Among other things, it said the top 10 in-demand jobs of 2010 did not exist at all in 2004; that the United States was currently preparing students for jobs that yet don’t exist, using technologies that haven’t yet been invented in order to solve problems they don’t know yet are problems.

It got me thinking. What exactly are we preparing our children for? The information age we live in today requires us to prepare our children more effectively to compete against others from all corners of the planet. We owe them that duty. Global boundaries are shrinking and the world is now a truly global village. In business, we no longer compete against our neighbours and countrymen but against unknown entities in some remote parts of the globe. The hunt for skills and talents traverses national boundaries. Our children will have to compete against other children from China, India, Ghana, the United States, South Africa and a whole lot of others for jobs and opportunities.

Everyday, as I move around and see our young people go in and out of schools — some too dilapidated and bare to be identified as such — I ask myself, can these children compete favourably against their peers from outside our borders? Are we equipping them with decent skills and competency to flourish in a dynamic world of change and disruptions? Or are we handicapping them with perfunctory and outdated education lacking in grit?

Sadly, I often answer in the negative. Which fuels my conviction that we need to revisit and overhaul our learning system. I recall a conversation I had recently with a young lad who shared his dream of going to the university to study computer science so he can become the next Mark Zukerberg. Powerful ambition! But are we feeding this ambition and the ambitions of millions of our youths and young people with the right fuel? It is not just enough for them to dream. We must help them to live their dreams. So if what you call revamping our schools is to create a new learning culture, increase our investments in education, review our curriculum and equip our children with real world problem-solving capacities, then we are on the same page. This is the road we should be on. This is the road we are yet to travel.

The Way Forward:

Going forward, we need a people-centred vision for the state and the people. We need to properly articulate and agree what kind of communities and society we need to live in the next five, ten, twenty and fifty years. What human, financial and material resources do we require to build our vision? Where do we want to see our people? What role do we want them to play in the emerging local, national and global space? What skills and competencies do we want to equip them with? What programmes and systems do we need to effectively train and raise our young to stardom?

Akwa Ibom is rich today because of the strategic vision of our forefathers. Recall the pioneering work of our founding fathers who saw education and skill development as the only way to build prosperity, fight injustice, develop long term solutions to social problems and promote the total development of our human resources. It was through this vision that the Oron Development Union was born as the first community development association in Nigeria to champion self help and community progress. This same vision propelled the Ibibio State Union to sponsor some of its brightest young men for higher learning outside our shores.

It was therefore not an accident that the first indigenous governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, the first officer of the Nigerian Army, the first Inspector General of the Nigerian Police Force, the first Nigerian to hold a Masters degree in Agriculture and various other fields, were all from the same geographical area known today as Akwa Ibom State.

There is no better testimony of the impact of that vision than that Obong Victor Attah, son of one of the beneficiaries of that scholarship, became the champion in the fight for fiscal equality and resource control and won for Akwa Ibom State, the wealth and resources that we now enjoy.

Recall also that when the late Dr. Clement Isong became the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, he could draw upon a rich crop of Akwa Ibom people in the banking sector. They were just everywhere.

We need to review our educational curriculum to favour skills and competencies demanded by the modern world. The call of leadership is to inspire, to rally the troops and to fire them for higher ideals. We need to raise leaders in technology, innovation, energy, power, agriculture, genetic engineering, banking and finance, environmental management, climatology, machine intelligence, medicine, sports, entertainment and the arts amongst other areas.

Education and The Next Wave of Growth:

Oil has saved us but it is on its way out. The next wave of growth will be fuelled by the higher mental capacity of our people; what they can see; what they can create and what they can give to the world. That is why we must invest aggressively in 21st century education. A computer is not a toy; every child in school today should have access to one. The internet is not just for Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and Snapchat; it is the platform for exponential knowledge and information that will help our young people to develop real world problem-solving skills.

We must teach our children to code and write programmes from a very early age so they can develop technology solutions for the challenges that are specific to our environment and beyond. This means emphasis on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, STEM. Why is this important? First, if technology is the core resource of the information age, programming and coding literacy becomes the currency of trade in that world.

STEM will teach students how to perform proper scientific research using real-world problems, improve their thinking processes when solving challenges; develop a rigorous methodology for communicating research work and prepare students to compete against some of the smartest kids on the planet

STEM graduates have a 500 percent chance of being employed than a non-STEM graduate. Growth in STEM jobs is three times faster than job growth in non-STEM industries. They will also earn more

Our young ones need the right mindset. They must be ready to dream and step out to grab the wings that give flight to their dreams.

As a starting point and as a matter of urgency let us introduce the History of Akwa Ibom into our curriculum. Our kids ought to know and celebrate the indomitable spirit of the true Akwa Ibom person. They must hear about the visionary leadership of our forebears that brought us this far; about the fight of the Ikot Abasi women against oppression to know that the forces of evil cannot prevail against a determined people. We must tell them about Obong Victor Attah’s dogged fight for economic emancipation that has brought trillions of Naira to Akwa Ibom.

Akwa Ibom must accelerate its drive to create world-class stars outstanding for their creativity, innovativeness and can-do spirit. We must value and grow the talents of our children whether in music, sports, arts, design and other creative endeavours. A 25 year — old Brazillian footballer has just commanded a $263 million transfer fee and an annual pay of N10.8billion! In five to ten years, the next most expensive footballer in the world can be an Akwa Ibom boy. It is doable. With the right investment, we can do it.

That is why I want to publicly applaud here the landmark work of one of your members, Victor Ekpuk. He is one of the greatest artists Nigeria has ever produced. I always feel a sense of home-grown pride reading about his works and exploits and his very tangible artistic footprints which celebrate the creativity and innovativeness of the Akwa Ibom spirit. Victor, I hope you will find time to return to Akwa Ibom and inspire a new generation of creative people to follow in your footstep. NDDC will like to partner with you to run creative workshops for budding artists in Akwa Ibom and across the Niger Delta.

Our children need true role models. They need to follow after people whose lives demonstrate clearly and unambiguously that the future prosperity and growth we seek will not be dropped on our laps but earned by competitive hardwork and deployment of creativity, ingenuity and innovation.

New Territories to Conquer:

Akwa Ibom State budgeted N371.292 billion for 2017. This translates to about $1billion which is averagely posted by many mid-size companies here in your cities. But it is also less than the 2016 turnover of any of the five top banks in Nigeria: Access Bank (N381.3billion); UBA (N384bn); GT Bank ((N414.62bn); Zenith (N507.99bn) and FirstBank (N581.89bn). These banks are the product of the creative thinking of young men and women who saw opportunities and went after them.

There are new opportunities out there and they present to our young ones new territories to conquer: Renewable energy sources; high efficiency solar systems; high density energy storage; nano science, neuroscience and machine intelligence; biosciences and biophysics (protein folding leading to cheaper drugs) and affordable public health systems; biomedical engineering and medicine (engineered body parts); climate and biosphere management; quantum computing; fundamental nature of matter: dark energy and dark matter; space travel and sports and sports medicine. Properly prepared, they can step into these arena and become undisputed stars, impacting our economic and social fabrics in ways we never could imagine.

NDDC and Education in Akwa Ibom State

Our government must create the right learning environment for this to happen. Right environment implies increased funding for education; computers in the classroom; comfortable learning spaces. At NDDC, we emphasize on the environment, content and quality of learning. Since inception, we have rehabilitated more than 120 school blocks in Akwa Ibom State and in 2016/2017 school year alone, we have supplied 9,600 desks and benches to schools across the state. Our signature hostel project at the University of Uyo has helped to resolve legacy accommodation challenges at the university. And we have sponsored 230 indigenes of the state to various universities abroad for post-graduate programmes in high-skill areas. This year, we are budgeting more than N4bilion for renovation and upgrade of learning environments across the Niger Delta.

Our recurrent skill acquisition programmes offer sustainable technical and life skills to many. The trainings we provide are carefully crafted based on established needs across the region and for industries operating in the region. This year, we are rejigging the programmes based on feedbacks to make them even more relevant and effective.

Conclusion:

Progress and development are mostly initiated from within. Akwa Ibom State must develop its homegrown strategy to reposition its people to become critical economic players beyond its borders. This will require creative, versatile and transformational leadership, in the place of transactional leadership.

Innovation is a key element in economic competitiveness and progress. We must begin to train our children today to become the innovation champions of tomorrow.

As an individual who loves and believes in Akwa Ibom and in my position as the Chief Executive Officer of the NDDC, I want to extend a hand of partnership to AKISAN and its members looking to coming home to make tangible investments in education, social and economic projects, that you will find in me and the NDDC ready partners.

Ladies and gentlemen, I thank you one more time for honoring me with the invitation to share some aspects of my vision with you.

God bless Akwa Ibom State.

God bless AKISAN

Felicitations…

I am delighted to be invited to deliver this Special Address, titled: “Rethinking the Institutional Strategy for Delivering Development in the Niger Delta Region”, at the 6th Sustainability in the Extractive Industries Conference, 2017. This conference has been organised, first, to deepen our conversations on, as well as sharpen overall strategies for, the development of the Nigerian economy.

But of a more specific design, and this is very important to me and all who are from the Niger Delta, is to develop a more integrative, robust, engaging and sustainable strategy for delivering development to the Niger Delta region.

This conference could not have come at a more opportune and urgent time. We are, daily, confronted by the challenge of mounting social and physical infrastructural development needs, across the nation and within the Niger Delta region, in the face of dwindling economic power, occasioned by declining oil revenue. The dynamics are changing. Interestingly, the urgency has become even more acute, due to increased awareness, widespread access to information, the vigour of engagement in all areas, as well as our shared commitment to improve the living conditions of all Nigerians.

It becomes, therefore, imperative for us to fashion a veritable strategy, a worthy masterplan, within whose body of prescriptions and recommendations we find the roadmap towards a great country which ennobles our collective aspirations and meets all our expectations.

Introduction

Since the early questions began, leading to the Willinks’ Commission of 1958, in which, for the first time, the agitations of the people of the Niger Delta for equity, justice and development were distilled into a document and given voice, the Niger Delta great region has witnessed many conversations such as this. Beyond words, it has led to agitation, violence and destruction of oil installations. Today, in this hall, this conversation continues, for it springs from the region’s hunger for social justice and sustainable development.

This, unarguably, will not be the last gathering of technocrats and stakeholders to continue to seek answers. But there is an earnest hope in me, and, I believe, in all of you, that we take definitive steps towards finding enduring resolutions. That we find, all of us, the moral force and imperative to begin to move beyond words and weapons into positive action; from destructive to productive engagement, which will help transform our beloved region into the sum of all our dreams and aspirations. And the time to begin to take this definitive and decisive walk is now, with this single step.

The Niger Delta Region

As many people who know me will attest, the subject of institutional strengthening, due process, integrative strategy and the overall sustainable development of the Niger Delta region is one of which I am deeply concerned, and about which I am always happy to speak. This is because it is important for us to fully understand the dynamics and imperatives of the development challenges facing us as a region and as a people. By so doing, we become better able to contribute, as stakeholders and partners, to the process of that development, with collective action and within vision.

The Niger Delta has remained, arguably, the most important region of this country, particularly in socio-economic terms. Yet, for a long time it has suffered untold neglect and widespread devastation and deterioration. Right from that Willinks’ Commission of pre-colonial Nigeria, many prescriptions have been made on how best to develop the Niger Delta region and improve the living conditions of the people.

For a region that has produced, over the years, a majority of Nigeria’s wealth, it remains a tragic paradox that all the indices of development have been negative for the Niger Delta. These have manifested in pervasive regional poverty, mounting unemployment, poor infrastructural facilities and services, depleting environmental resources which impacted negatively on the traditional livelihoods of the people, and lopsided developmental initiatives that created very few islands of riches amidst a sea of poverty.

For instance, in its 1995 report, the World Bank described the Niger Delta as the least developed area of Nigeria, with per capita income of less than $280 per annum. It declared that all indices of development such as education, health, sanitation, job creation, water and other physical infrastructures, were far below acceptable standards. The report also showed that environmental resources were gradually being degraded and that it offered an extremely poor human capacity and skills base.

The Niger Delta region is the largest mangrove forest in Africa, as well as the third largest wetland in the world, after Mississippi in North America and the Pantanal in South America. Covering about 70,000 square kilometres and about 7.5 per cent of Nigeria’s landmass, it boasts a great expanse of rich rain and mangrove forest, rivers, creeks, canals and rivulets, many of which empty into the Atlantic. It is buffeted throughout the year by tides, resulting in erosion, flooding and silting.

The region is home to over 40 million people from 40 ethnic groups who speak about 250 dialects, out of which 800 of 13,000 communities are oil-producing. The traditional livelihoods of the people are farming and fishing, the discovery of oil in Oloibiri in 1956, has provided a considerable alternate economic activity. In all, it hosts over 1,100 producing oil wells from about 400 documented oil and gas fields.

Although the region is also rich in agro and aquaculture, as well as other non-oil products, it is as a result of this sector that the region has become important over the years, contributing about 65% of federally-distributed revenue. Since 1956, the sector has provided about $600 billion of revenues to the exchequer to fund Nigeria’s budgets. Sadly, this has barely impacted the region.

Past Intervention Efforts

When the Willinks’ Commission turned in its report in 1958, it recommended that the Niger Delta deserved special attention and should be designated a special area for development. As a consequence, the Federal Government established the Niger Delta Development Board, NDDB, in 1960; a board that was, at best, moribund. It was scrapped and was followed by many other intervention agencies which likewise failed. These included:

• The River Basin Development Authority which was established after the Civil War, not just for the development of the Niger Delta but for the whole country, negating the prescriptions of the Willink’s Commission’s report.
• The Presidential Task Force which devoted 1.5% of the Federation Account to the development of the Niger Delta region.
• The Belgore Commission which was to identify the root causes of the disaffection in the oil producing areas and suggest the best way forward. It recommended the establishment of a developmental agency and this gave birth to the Oil Mineral Producing Area Development Commission (OMPADEC) in 1993.

The continued underdevelopment of the Niger Delta is a consequence of the failure of these efforts. And it is for a number of reasons:

• There was weak institutional governance and poor enforcement of regulations and policy, which often led to recklessness.
• Lack of continuity in policy
• No Regional Master Plan that captured an aggregate of the peoples’ needs, aspirations and hopes and provided a integrative vision.
• Most projects were designed to manage emergent regional crises or for political/institutional patronage, and did not have long-term benefits.
• Poor manpower and leadership instability. As a result, appointments were based more on political expediency than professional competence.
• Funding was grossly inadequate.
• Of course, the political will to succeed was lacking.

This created a spiral towards sustainable under-development and worsened the peoples’ conditions, leading to frustrated expectations. This slowly gave rise to tension, agitation and conflict, as well as vices such as armed robbery, kidnapping, vandalisation, oil theft and other forms of economic sabotage.

To understand this dilemma and fashion a proper strategy that changes the spiral, from the negative to the positive, it is important to understand how the sustainable development goals, SDGs, sponsored by the United Nations, helps tackle all the factors and outcomes of failure as enumerated above. To achieve that, we must, as a matter of urgency, rethink and overhaul our institutional strategies, strengthen all our social and political structures, institutionalise better governance protocols in our conduct, as well as reaffirm a collective commitment to doing what is right and proper at all times, for the good of the people.

Achieving Sustainable Development

The Agenda 21 Report of the United Nations defines Sustainable Development as one “that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” The concept of sustainable development first began to take a major hold on world development economics in 1992 when the first global United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, known as the Earth Summit, was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Later in December that same year, the UN General Assembly established the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) to ensure effective follow-up on resolutions from that major conference. To fully address sustainable development, the United Nations sponsored 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), namely:

1. Poverty Reduction
2. Reduction of hunger
3. Healthy lives and promote well-being
4. Enhanced education
5. Gender equality
6. Water and sanitation
7. Affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy
8. Improved well being
9. Affordable clean energy
10. Descent work and economic growth
11. Sustainable cities and communities
12. Responsible consumption and Production
13. Climate action
14. Sustainable use the oceans, seas and marine resources
15. Biodiversity protection
16. Peace, conflict prevention and security
17. Partnerships and Collaborations.

These goals were designed to create a common set of development goals for all communities in every country with 2030 as the deadline for attainment. To ensure buy-in and successful implementation, the United Nations has continuously encouraged dialogue and partnership at all levels of governance. In all these, governance remains an over-arching platform and vehicle for the successful implementation of sustainable development goals.

That is why, for most parts and Africa and in Nigeria, sustainable development has remained elusive and we are compelled, by an indefatigable desire to do right by the people, to gather and continue to share ideas. Poverty, for instance, is still a major challenge, as 41% of the Sub-Sahara African population (or roughly 300 million people) lived, as at 2004, on one dollar a day or less. Most countries on the continent have not managed to reap fully the benefits of globalization.

Multiple armed conflicts, insufficient access to education and widespread pandemics, such as HIV and malaria, have also undermined Africa’s efforts at achieving sustainable development. The continent is challenged by serious environmental threats like desertification, deforestation, climate change and, as with the Niger Delta region, erosion and pollution.

Only recently, President Muhammadu Buhari launched the Ogoni Clean-up, a bold measure determined to clean Ogoniland and propel region-wide remediation. The Ogoni Clean-up is quite instructive. Over the years, the adverse impact of pollution on the traditional livelihoods of the people, particularly in an area that was once called the food basket of the Niger Delta, has been great indeed. The clean-up of the environment will ultimately get to other parts of the Niger Delta as President Buhari promised in his speech at its flag-off.

Rethinking Our Current Approach: What We Must Do

Mahatma Ghandi once said: “The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world’s problems.” It compels urgent attention that the Niger Delta wallows in poverty, occasioned by under-development, despite its riches. It remains a haunting and unsettling paradox. At the core of whatever we must do, particularly in Government, is the urgent need to enthrone sustainable livelihoods. The logic is that what we do today to provide livelihood must be such that it sustains earth’s resources, and remains important for the future search for and enjoyment of such livelihoods.

The dynamics and methods for tackling poverty, for creating employment for our graduating students, for instance, for preserving the environment and for boosting agriculture, industry and allied pursuits, must be done within the context of a shared vision, through integrated implementation and partnership. As I reflected earlier, agriculture, in which the Niger Delta people have founded their core preoccupation and occupation, presents the strongest and most rewarding option to fighting poverty and facilitating sustainable development.

It worked great wonders in countries such as Mexico, India and China, where the Green Revolution is one of the success stories of modern times. In his book, “The End of Poverty,” Jeffrey Sachs describes how the Rockefeller Foundation, wary of the grim possibility of massive hunger due to a rapidly rising global population, began developing and promoting high-yield varieties of staple crops, first as a pilot project in Mexico, and then replicated in Asia.

In 1944, the Foundation set up an institute to develop high-yield varieties of wheat for Mexico. Scientific breeding, using crosses of strains brought from Japan after World War II, led to a breakthrough. “Mexico went from a large net importer of grain to a significant net exporter between 1944 and 1964,” he says.

In Asia, India went from eleven metric tonnes of wheat production in 1960 to twenty-four million tonnes in 1970, thirty-six million tonnes in 1980, and fifty-five million tonnes in 1990. This has also worked wonders in the Philippines and Peru. Similarly in China, agriculture has led the way to the emergence of this Asian giant as a major force in the world economy. This is especially remarkable when you consider that China, with a population of over 1.3 billion people, is able to produce enough food for her people, and yet has more than enough to make her a major exporter of agricultural produce to the world. It opens up the economy and challenges activities in industry for processed and allied products.

In Nigeria the reverse seems the case. From a country that exported cocoa, groundnuts and palm to the world, we have become one massively dependent on imports, of agricultural produce and processed foods. Indeed, it remains a tragic irony that we showed Malaysia the secrets of palm production and lost it in the process. Yet, Nigeria continues to boast of great land resource, with a capacity to produce the organic foods the world hungers for.

A World Bank study shows, for instance, that the Peremabiri area of Bayelsa State is capable of producing enough rice to feed Nigeria and the rest of Africa. How can we exploit these opportunities to fight poverty, which is at the core of the continual agitations in the land? How can we sustain them? It is vital to note that tackling and defeating poverty are essential to the urgent need to boost security in the region — or in any society, for that matter.

In his book, “How Rich Countries Got Rich, and How Poor Countries Stay Poor,” Erik Reinert declares that for such initiatives to work, funds must be matched by the establishment of industrial and service sectors that can absorb the physical and human investments. Also, Jeffrey Sachs lists a number of factors why some countries fail to thrive, including the poverty trap, lack of innovation and governance failures.

In the late 1970s, Nigeria began its own Green Revolution amidst fanfare. Soon after, it collapsed and Nigeria lapsed back to its unenviable status as a major importer of grains and processed foods. Yet, the Nigerian Green Revolution failed due to, among others, a misapplication of funds, insincerity among the leadership, lack of innovation, geo-politics and, above all, poor governance. It is only one of many failures that have come to haunt us as a nation.

In its 2008 November issue on African Governance Rankings, African Business magazine ranked Nigeria as number 37, better only than countries like Sierra Leone, Liberia, Angola, Eritrea, Sudan, Chad and Somalia where there have been long years of leadership crisis and war. The report ranked small countries like Mauritius, Seychelles and Botswana first, second and third, respectively and to underline its rising profile in Africa, Mauritius is involved in more multi-sector investments in other African countries. Almost 10 years after, the Nigerian situation is not significantly better.

Strengthening Institutional Governance: “Less Politics, More Governance”

A major cause of and trigger for sustainable underdevelopment is poor governance. According to a report by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) ‘governance’ means “the process of decision-making and the process by which decisions are implemented (or not implemented).” It covers all strata of society, but is most prevalent in Government, government structures, institutions and the faithful implementation (or lack thereof) of the strategies for sustainable development (whose goals were earlier mentioned).

In its report, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) describes governance as encompassing all aspects of the way a country is governed, including its economic policies and regulatory framework. It says: “Corruption is a narrower concept, which is often defined as the abuse of public authority or trust for private benefit.” In 1996 the Board of Governors of the IMF asked the financial institution to “promote good governance in all its aspects, including by ensuring the rule of law, improving the efficiency and accountability of the public sector, and tackling corruption, as essential elements of a framework within which economies can prosper.”

Characteristics of Good Governance

Good governance has eight major identifiable characteristics.

1. It must be participatory;
2. It must obey the rule of law;
3. It must be transparent;
4. It must be responsive;
5. It must be consensus oriented;
6. It must recognise and respect equity, justice and fairness;
7. It must promote effectiveness and efficiency; and
8. It must be accountable.

Consequently, it becomes imperative for us, in rethinking our strategies, to:

1. Reform our governance systems to ensure daily compliance with rules and regulations, as well as reduce discretionary actions.
2. Restructure the over-bloated balance sheets of all public institutions to free resources for urgent development needs.
3. Re-engineer the public sector workforce to enthrone skills and professional competence, a requirement to improving commitment to service delivery to citizens.

Ultimately, Government and all institutions of governance must fix themselves. Recently, I have begun to advocate that we must begin to play less politics and offer more governance, because in that we offer to the people the best of our capacity and capability, and begin to fulfil their dreams and meet their expectations.

Improving Planning and Monitoring

As stated earlier, one of the major reasons for sustainable under-development has been the absence of a shared plan. Nigeria is a signatory to the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and has, over the years, developed plans and programmes for integrated development. From the introduction of the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) in 1986 by the Government of General Ibrahim Babangida, the Federal Government, through the National Planning Commission, has built into its Rolling Plans measures aimed at achieving development.

Nigeria’s approach to sustainable development also received a boost from the establishment of the VISION 2010 and Vision 2020 Committees, a body charged with the articulation of a long-term sectoral economic development programme designed to usher the nation into the third millennium. Yet, poor implementation and monitoring of deliverables remain undermining factors.

Consequently, it is vital to:

1. Evaluate all budget concepts for feasibility, ability to meet community needs, benefits, impacts, financial effectiveness, consistency, suitability, as well as sustainability.
2. Integrated and participatory approach to budget planning for inclusive, rather than exclusive, development of cities and rural areas.
3. Development of growth clusters that would be a trigger for sustainable livelihoods and shared development.
4. Periodic monitoring and evaluation of projects and programmes, using quantifiable and “tamper-proof” tools to reduce implementation gaps.

We are still hopeful that this vision will succeed, and a measure of this confidence comes from the determination of the present Federal Government, under President Muhammadu Buhari, to decisively tackle corruption and enthrone probity.

Collaborative Stakeholder Engagement

Some of the major impediments to development are exclusionist governance and territorialism. In most government institutions, stakeholder engagement is poor and planning often occur without the needs analysis of the communities and beneficiaries of development initiatives. While the Johannesburg Summit developed clear strategies for LEEDs, SEEDs and NEEDs analysis, Nigeria remains challenged by a planning process that springs from the top-down, rather than bottom-up.

What this does is we offer projects and programmes that are fundamentally flawed and difficult to implement. Even when implemented, they are not beneficial and become white-elephant in nature. Ultimately, they address nothing and perpetuates underdevelopment, despite heavy financial outlays. Consequently, it is important to:

1. Engage communities and solicit their inputs in the planning process.
2. All levels of government must harmonise planning efforts, by working together on local, state, regional and national plans. This is particularly important with the Niger Delta, where the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, was created to facilitate shared development. To this end, a regional master plan was developed and the Partners for Sustainable Development (PSD) Forum created to ensure equity and compliance.
3. Donors and other development partners must be included in the monitoring of projects and programmes to ensure compliance to the process for delivery and implementation.

NDDC and the 4-R Initiative

These are at the heart of our policy thrust in the Niger Delta Development Commission. When we took over on November 4, 2016, we unveiled what we called a 4-R Initiative, imperative to helping the Commission rethink its efforts at facilitating sustainable development in the Niger Delta region. As you all may already be aware, it is the Commission’s mission to facilitate the even, rapid and sustainable development of the Niger Delta, into a region that is socially stable, economically prosperous, politically peaceful and ecologically regenerative.

Since 2001 NDDC has undertaken diverse projects and programmes covering these core areas, driven by the needs of the communities and the urgency to improve physical infrastructures such as roads, electricity, water supply, shore protection, canalisation and reclamation. The Commission was determined, pursuant to the Mandate enunciated in the NDDC Acts of 2000, to create wealth and jobs, reduce poverty and unemployment, improve skills and human capacity, improve peace and security, develop partnerships among stakeholders, particularly through the Partners for Sustainable Development programme and attract investments, particularly in agriculture, processing and allied products.

The 4-R Initiative is very important, because it is to:

1. Restore our core mandate;
2. Restructure our balance sheet;
3. Reform our governance structures and protocols; and
4. Reaffirm our commitment to doing what is right and proper, at all times.

It remains our determination to improve the transparency of our processes, leverage on technology to increase accountability and efficiency, consult stakeholders frequently, engage proactively and be creative about the programmes that we design, to uplift the people and the region. This is a key paradigm shift which we enjoin every institution to adopt.

It was important, also, to enter into partnerships with organisations well-equipped to help us provide real sustainable development in the Niger Delta. Only recently, we signed four Memoranda of Understanding with the Facility for Oil Sector Transparency and Reform in Nigeria (FOSTER), the Market Development Project in the Niger Delta (MADE), the Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND) and BudgIT. It is our objective to strengthen processes, strengthen institutions, boost agriculture and the regional economy and ensure that NDDC is equipped to deliver on its mandate.

Beyond the Commission, it is important to state that there are good signs thing may be going in the right direction. There are strong collaborations between NDDC and States, particularly Edo, Ondo, Delta and Bayelsa Governments, as well as the oil and gas companies on projects and programmes, designed to eliminate duplications and reduce cost. Only recently, the Federal Executive Council approved the technical audit report of the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, which showed a balance sheet with N423bn of funds with contractors, but only 12% performance. This is a prelude to restructuring. Various state governments in the Niger Delta region are also evaluating their portfolio of projects, with a view to reducing liabilities and improving delivery.

Conclusion

The development of the Niger Delta region — and Nigeria — cannot be sustained if these factors are not recognised and measures put in place for their implementation. It is important to strengthen regulatory enforcement at all times, to ensure compliance. It is important to improve the responsiveness of agencies tasked with the protection of the environment, for instance, and large punitive taxes for environmental abuse imposed, to boost livelihoods and combat health hazards. Added to this is the strengthening of law and order, as well as legal sanctions available to regulators and ensure the effective use of the Ecological Fund.

In conclusion, it is important for us all to begin to woo investors back to Nigeria and the Niger Delta, because sustainable development will not only improve the quality of life of our people by reducing poverty and disease and improving peace and security, it will bring investors, thereby ensuring that the economy becomes vibrant again. There will be new businesses in agriculture, tourism, and the oil and gas sector and its consequence is a region and country, full of industry and hope, which satisfies all our yearnings.

I believe the future is bright for us as a country and as a region. But, we must affirm, even here, as stakeholders, as leaders and leaders of thought, to do what is right and proper for our people. Their well-being and the well-being of the Niger Delta lie in our hands, and we cannot afford to fail.

Once more, I thank you for this opportunity and for your time and patience. God bless you.

BEING THE SPECIAL ADDRESS DELIVERED BY THE MANAGING DIRECTOR/CEO, NIGER DELTA DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION, NDDC, MR. NSIMA U. EKERE, KJW, AT 6TH SUSTAINABILITY IN THE EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRIES CONFERENCE IN ABUJA, ON WEDNESDAY, JULY 20, 2017.

Our gathering today serves as an important milestone for the broad plan of action set in motion by the new Governing Board and Management of the NDDC to strengthen NDDC for the achievements of its core mandate: the development of the people and the Niger Delta region.

From inception, we recognized the need to actively seek and engage key stakeholders and partners to collaborate with and thereby act as the integrator for all plans to develop the Niger Delta. I am indeed pleased that the series of conversations we began late last year are beginning to bear fruit, with the signing today of a Memorandum of Understanding with Market Development Project in the Niger Delta, MADE. Under the terms of the MOU, MADE will work with NDDC to boost efforts at stimulating sustainable, pro-poor growth in selected agricultural and other input markets. We will also work to improve the position of economically active but disadvantaged men and women in these markets, by making them more inclusive.

This MOU will also enable grant funding for sustainable development initiatives, as well as stimulate growth in Non-Oil Products through enhanced oil palm production, development of poultry farming, training in the production of finished leather goods, training in aquatic farming and media and ICT supported agriculture extension service of the Presidential Amnesty Program.

The need to diversify the nation’s economy, in general, and that of the Niger Delta, in particular, has never been more imperative. Economic diversification is vital to Niger Delta region’s long-term economic growth and we must align ourselves with initiatives that seek to advance this very vital cause. For this reason, agriculture and other factor markets must be given much needed attention, in order to exploit opportunities that can create vast number of jobs and boost employment profile of the Niger Delta region.

Government partnership with the private sector in the non-oil sector, especially agriculture, and the fostering of an environment that promotes innovation, encourages creativity, attracts investments and engenders technological advancements will serve as the platform upon which the economic and social advancement of the Niger Delta region must be established.

Beyond the deliverables outlined in the MOU, it is our earnest expectation that our collaboration with MADE will help management focus efforts and resources on social outcomes that really matter to the people of the Niger Delta. We hope to build a strong and broad-based support network for the expansion of the economy of the Niger Delta and promote one that is healthy, flexible, and not tied to a single industry or market sector. We must build an economy that contains a mix of small, medium, and large businesses, one in which every Niger Deltan is a stakeholder, participant and investor.

By this initiative, we hope to send a strong and clear message to the people of the Niger Delta, as well as all Nigerians and the international community, that the new Governing Board and Management of the NDDC is committed to ensuring that we establish, for the Commission and the Niger Delta region, enduring instruments and institutions vital to fulfilling both our mandate and the expectations of the people.

Let me restate our determination, as Board and Management, to restoring our core mandate, restructuring our balance sheet and reaffirming our commitment to doing what is right and proper, at all times, for the benefit of the people of this great region. It is, therefore, incumbent upon us all, at this time, to pledge total adherence to the letters and vision of this partnership, as well as the integrity and spirit of its binding MOU to which we append, today, our signatures and intent.

Once more, I welcome the team from MADE to the Commission. May I restate that I look forward, with enthusiasm and conviction, to working with you to deliver on the goals set out in the MOU and in the larger context, to make the Niger Delta the glorious, productive and constantly developing place we envision it to be.

REMARKS BY THE MANAGING DIRECTOR, NIGER DELTA DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION (NDDC) AT THE SIGNING CEREMONY OF THE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING (MOU)BETWEEN THE NDDC AND MARKET DEVELOPMENT IN THE NIGER DELTA (MADE) AT NDDC CORPORATE OFFICE, 167, ABA ROAD, PORT HARCOURT, RIVERS STATE ON MAY 15, 2017

I am immensely delighted to welcome you all to the official signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Niger Delta Development Commission and FOSTER.

Today’s event is a culmination of the conversations we started with FOSTER in the last quarter of 2016. FOSTER epitomizes transparency and accountability in service delivery. Our preference for collaborating with FOSTER is deliberate. It illustrates our determination and readiness for openness in our operations. It could not have been otherwise, since transparency and accountability are the fundamental parameters of the Muhammadu Buhari administration.

Although we started conversations with FOSTER over seven months ago, in response to the urgency of the need for this collaboration, we chose the path of deliberate, professional and thorough engagement. It was — and still remains — our conviction that it is better, in the spirit of inclusiveness and shared leadership, for the Management to understand and ratify the proposition for collaboration, as well as its derivatives. That has always been the vision of the new Governing Board and Management. I am delighted to inform you that the Governing Board and Management, at its last meeting, ratified our collaboration with FOSTER.

The significance of that unanimous ratification and buy-in is that the product of our relationship with FOSTER shall be embraced, co-owned and institutionalised for the sustainable benefit of the Commission and the larger interest of the Niger Delta region. It would outlive the lifespan of the current management. This was the guiding philosophy in our measured progress with FOSTER and other development partners.

The core mandate of the Commission is to facilitate rapid and sustainable development of the Niger Delta region to one that is economically prosperous, socially stable, ecologically regenerative and politically peaceful. The task of delivering on this important change is enormous, in terms of resource and capacity. We can hardly do it alone without external support and collaboration. That was why, upon assumption of office, we extended invitation to development partners and other stakeholders to collaborate with us to deliver shared value to the people of the Niger Delta region. We commend FOSTER for their prompt response to our invitation and welcome them to this historic occasion with immense pleasure.

The key objectives and advantages of our collaboration with FOSTER are highlighted in these four areas:
Improvement to Reporting — FOSTER will support production of the Commission’s Quarterly Report, ensuring salient information is captured and presented in a readable and understandable manner.

Support improvements to prioritization of projects and budgeting. Strengthen transparency, disciplined spending, and generally, engender overhaul of the Commission’s internal systems, processes and procedures, with particular emphasis on budgeting, contract administration and program implementation.

Provide support for project monitoring and evaluation — through development of a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation framework that tracks projects/programs from award, implementation to impact assessment.
Communications/Stakeholder Engagement — provide technical support to facilitate development of a communication strategy to ensure the Commission constantly engages with stakeholders in the region.

Surely, these needs-based propositions resonate with our vision, and their diligent implementation would doubtless enhance our organisational effectiveness and delivery.

It is indeed an important step taken in our committed march towards ensuring that we establish, for the Commission and the Niger Delta region, enduring instruments and institutions vital to fulfilling both our mandate and the expectations of the people.

Let me restate our determination, as Board and Management, to restoring our core mandate, restructuring our balance sheet and reaffirming our commitment to doing what is right and proper, at all times, for the benefit of the people of this great region. It is, therefore, incumbent upon us all, at this time, to pledge total adherence to the letters and vision of this partnership, as well as the integrity and spirit of its binding MOU to which we append, today, our signatures and intent.

On behalf of the Governing Board and Management of the Commission, I welcome you once more and thank you for your attention.

REMARKS BY THE MANAGING DIRECTOR, NIGER DELTA DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION (NDDC) AT THE SIGNING CEREMONY OF THE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING (MOU)BETWEEN THE NDDC AND FACILITY FOR OIL SECTOR TRANSPARENCY AND REFORM IN NIGERIA (FOSTER) AT NDDC CORPORATE OFFICE, 167, ABA ROAD, PORT HARCOURT, RIVERS STATE ON MAY 15, 2017.

The Niger Delta is one of the most promising locations in Nigeria covering 9 states with a population of about 32 million people, 40% of whom are below 25 years. The region is the focal point for the Oil & Gas region with over 37 billion barrels of proven reserves and numerous other mineral deposits such as granite, barites, marble, clay, gypsum, phosphate rock, feldspar, limestone sand and gravel. Before the advent of Oil the region exported coal, gold, tin, columbite, tantalite, lead and zinc. With over 750,000 hectares suitable for fish/shrimp farming and 500,000 hectares of arable land for farming, the region is a diversified portfolio of opportunities.

For a region with such potential the challenges have been enormous. Over the last 15 years after the return to civilian rule in 1999, the perceived imbalances in wealth distribution led to agitations in the region for a more even distribution, which snowballed into armed insurgency in the creeks, destruction of Oil installations, reduction in production capacity, and eventual cessation of hostilities with an amnesty offer embraced by militant agitators, thereby calming the region.

The Federal Government is continuing its efforts to reposition the Niger Delta as an investment destination not just for Oil & Gas activities but also for investments in agriculture, consumer goods, ICT and other growth areas. Specific policy initiatives targeting the root cause of the agitations in the region are been prepared for rollout by this administration. These will tackle security and law and order, infrastructure, investment in modular refineries and investment in people.

What are the opportunities we see? Gas is a big one. Nigeria is sometimes described as a gas giant with some oil. The country has 192 TCF of proven gas reserves with the potential to develop up to 600 TCF, according to the US Department of Energy. This can provide feedstock for up to 20 GW of thermal power generation and 64 MTPA of LNG for at least 36 years.

To increase our reserves we need to expand the areas for exploration for gas. There are about 200 oil and gas open acreages for allocation across different terrains in the country with 34 blocks located in the Niger Delta that need to be explored further.

In response to the current challenges and in preparation for the emerging new vision for the region, investors are been encouraged in the following areas of opportunity:

• Gas-to-power projects: are required to provide gas for at least 20 GW of thermal power generation over the next 10 years. Investments in exploration, gas gathering and pipeline networks are currently available;
• Domestic LPG market: with per capita consumption of 1Kg compared to Ghana (4kg), South Africa (8.5kg), Egypt (85kg) and Indonesia (24kg), Nigeria is sitting on a lot of latent demand. There are opportunities for investment in production and supply of gas, bulk transportation with shallow draft vessels, bulk storage, inland transportation and distribution, cylinders and accessories and retail outlets;
• Power generation: with an energy deficit estimated at over 5GW, Nigeria needs more power plants, especially if the vision of moving the economy beyond Oil is to materialize. Investments in green-field power plants are required to close this gap and start the industrialization of the economy;
• Agriculture: as of 2016 Nigeria imported about N1.2 trillion ($3 billion) worth of wheat, rice, sugar and fish. With over 750,000 hectares of acreage suitable for fish and shrimp farming, the Niger Delta offers great incentives for investors;
• ICT: with a large youth population, 18 universities and numerous other tertiary institutions coupled with fibre interconnect within the 9 states, the region is open for tech-related investments. We are supporting an ecosystem of tech incubators to prepare the environment for investors.

“The race is not for the swift but who can endure the obstacles and challenges to stay focused in the face of adversity”.

Speech Delivered at the ongoing Offshore Technology Conference OTC in Houston, Texas, USA

Nigeria’s oil rich delta, is the third largest delta in the world. Located in southern Nigeria, the Niger Delta has a population of over 45 million across 9 states. Since 1975, the region has accounted for more than 75% of Nigeria’s export earnings, but this has not translated to meaningful development of the Niger Delta region. More than any other region in Nigeria, ours is a testament to the devastating effect of the Dutch Disease; not only have we not known peace, but our environment is severely polluted and economic activity outside the oil and gas sector is low — 60% of the population is under 30 years old, with high unemployment, limited regional integration and a terrain difficult to navigate.

This is why seventeen years after the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) was created, N1.4 trillion naira spent and an estimated 3,424 projects later; the NDDC is determined to focus on what Prof Klaus Schwab, described as the Fourth Industrial Revolution — the technological boom.

Information and communication technology provides a broad base from which the Niger Delta can tackle education, transportation, healthcare, social services, agriculture, environment and disaster management, financial inclusion, youth and unemployment, governance and security and we must secure this base for the region.

It is in preparation to participate productively in the global knowledge and technology driven economy that the NDDC has invested immense resources on health and education over the years. No less than 1,411 students have received scholarships since 2010 of which 1,066 were supported in M.Sc and 345 in Ph.D programmes and in health over the years our programmes have extended over 1.2 million documented patients treated, 3500 communities visited and 6,000 referral cases managed.

These investments are already yielding fruit with our postgraduate scholars earning distinctions and prizes across the world. Imagine being able to create the enabling environment for them to return and contribute their skills to the development of the Niger Delta.

Since November 2016, the NDDC has been involved in planning how best to leverage on ICT to build human capacity and fast track social and economic development in the region. Our first task was to actively seek and engage the key stakeholders and partners to collaborate with and in so doing act as the integrator for all plans to develop the Niger Delta. By working in partnership with international donor funded organisations such as the World Bank (Nigeria), Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND), Facility for Oil Sector Transparency (FOSTER), and Market Development for the Niger Delta Programme (MADE) we want to create opportunities to amplify the impact of our collective work in the area.

The next step is to find and work with credible partners to switch on the Niger Delta with broadband capacity because amongst other things, the internet is a great enabler of innovation and creativity, capable of providing citizens with options for communicating, organising, working, learning, accessing and sharing information. The opportunities are staggering. Internet usage in Nigeria hovers between 92 and 91 million with the highest usage concentrated in Lagos with 12 million users, while Bayelsa, in the Niger Delta is one of the five states with the lowest Internet usage in Nigeria. If we can connect and integrate the Niger Delta via Internet, it eases the pressure on our roads and allows our younger generation and entrepreneurs to innovate.

The logical progression from the virtual integration of the Niger Delta would be to set up innovation hubs which provide the opportunity to teach coding and other uses of technology as well as provide shared spaces where entrepreneurs can come together and share the costs of operations. This is a model that has worked and is working in many parts of the world including India and close to home, Abuja and Lagos.

Another opportunity for ICT is with managing the environment — climate change mitigation and adaptation; managing biodiversity loss, water and soil pollution are all areas where ICT could be a game changer for the Niger Delta. Already, the clean-up of Ogoni land, which when completed will be the largest oil spill cleanup exercise in the world is providing women of the Niger Delta with learning and earning opportunities. As a member of the 13-member governing council, I will do my best, alongside Honourable Minister for Environment (and UN Deputy Secretary General Designate) Amina J. Mohammed and other members to ensure that the people of the Niger Delta benefit from transfer of technological knowledge and know-how.

I know ICT provides immense opportunities for the Niger Delta to enter the knowledge economy and while there are many who have come before me and many who will come after me to lead the NDDC, if the current Board and Management of the NDDC can pull off our ICT related plans for the Niger Delta, we would have moved a few steps closer to freeing the region from the debilitating reliance on our natural resources.

Nsima Ekere is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC