Nigeria’s approach to local content development in the oil and gas industry is attracting growing attention across Africa, with Ghana becoming the latest country to study the model that has helped expand indigenous participation in one of the continent’s most strategic sectors.

A delegation from the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) is currently in Nigeria on a benchmarking and knowledge-sharing visit to the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), seeking insights into the policies, institutional framework and implementation strategies that have shaped Nigeria’s local content programme over the past decade.

The visit reflects a broader trend among African energy-producing nations looking for ways to ensure that more of the value generated from oil and gas activities remains within their economies through local businesses, skilled labour and domestic capacity development.

Speaking during the engagement at the NCDMB headquarters in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, Executive Secretary of the Board, Felix Omatsola Ogbe, said African countries must place greater emphasis on building local capabilities if they are to maximise the benefits of their natural resources.

Represented by the Director of Corporate Services, Abdulmalik Halilu, Ogbe noted that Africa’s hydrocarbon reserves have expanded significantly over the past few decades, with the continent now holding more than 120 billion barrels of crude oil reserves and about 800 trillion standard cubic feet of gas.

Also Read: Dangote bets big on new Olokola deep seaport project

He argued that resource-rich nations can no longer afford to depend heavily on foreign technology and expertise for exploration, field development and production activities.

According to him, crude oil should catalyse economic transformation, particularly in a continent with a large and youthful workforce capable of acquiring the skills needed to drive industrial growth.

Ogbe explained that Nigeria’s local content framework has evolved considerably since its early beginnings as a policy unit within the former Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, eventually developing into a dedicated institution backed by legislation and regulatory oversight.

He highlighted the Nigerian Content 10-Year Strategic Roadmap as one of the key instruments guiding the Board’s activities, with a focus on technical capability development, compliance, business growth and market expansion.

Part of that strategy includes improving access to finance for indigenous companies through intervention funds managed in partnership with development finance institutions.

“What we have done is to create that access to make the local service companies competitive,” he said, explaining that the financing initiative has enabled Nigerian firms to acquire critical assets and expand their participation in the industry.

The Executive Secretary also stressed that local content policies should never be interpreted as a lowering of industry standards.

“Local content does not compromise standards. It does not mean you have African spec, European spec. It is one global spec,” he stated.

During a presentation on Nigeria’s local content journey, NCDMB officials disclosed that in-country value retention in the oil and gas industry has risen to 61 per cent since the enactment of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act in 2010.

For Ghana, the visit offers an opportunity to understand how Nigeria transformed local content from a policy objective into a structured development framework.

Leader of the delegation and Director of Corporate Affairs at GNPC, Eric Pwadura, said Ghana already operates a local content system but wants to gain a deeper understanding of Nigeria’s experience.

“Even though we have the legislation guiding local content, we have not had the benefit of having a robust local content environment like you have,” he said.

Pwadura noted that local content activities within GNPC are currently managed through a dedicated unit and expressed interest in learning how Nigeria built a more comprehensive institutional structure.

“We want to have a deeper understanding of your local content development programme,” he added.

Officials at the NCDMB said the visit reinforces the growing collaboration among African energy-producing countries seeking to strengthen indigenous participation across the oil and gas value chain.

The Board noted that it has previously partnered with institutions in Ghana, Senegal, Mozambique, Angola and Namibia, positioning Nigeria as one of the leading sources of local content expertise on the continent.

Meiza Nigeria