RismadarVoice Reporters
September 25, 2026
The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board has launched a monthly lecture series to deepen knowledge of Nigerian Content regulations, strengthen staff capacity and improve knowledge-sharing across the oil and gas industry.
The initiative, known as the LearnFest Lecture Series, was inaugurated on Thursday at the NCDMB headquarters in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, as part of efforts to improve understanding of the Board’s mandate, operations and regulatory processes.
LearnFest is being driven by the Nigerian Content Academy, the NCDMB’s specialised training and knowledge-sharing arm, and will initially focus on strengthening collaboration among the Board’s directorates before expanding participation to industry stakeholders.
The maiden three-hour session brought together personnel from the Board’s seven directorates and examined the responsibilities of their departments and divisions and how they work together to deliver the NCDMB’s objectives.
The Academy said the initiative was designed to break down institutional silos and encourage knowledge transfer across directorates, with the expectation that a better understanding of individual units would strengthen collaboration and operational efficiency.
Speaking at the event, Director of the Capacity Building Directorate, Engr. Abayomi Bamidele, said the programme would improve understanding of Nigerian Content tools and regulatory processes among NCDMB personnel and industry stakeholders.
Bamidele identified key areas requiring deeper understanding to include the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act 2010, Nigerian Content Human Capital Development Implementation Strategy, Nigerian Content Compliance Certificate, Nigerian Content Plan, statutory reporting requirements and expatriate quota regulations.
He said improved knowledge of the regulatory framework would make compliance and engagement easier for both the Board and operators in the industry.
According to him, oil and gas operators, service companies, industry associations, academic institutions and government ministries, departments and agencies have expressed interest in sending personnel to the Nigerian Content Academy for specialised training.
Bamidele disclosed that the Academy was also developing a faculty of resource persons, with the LearnFest sessions expected to help identify professionals suitable for future training programmes.
He added that participants’ feedback would form part of the process for assessing lecturers and prospective resource persons.
The director further disclosed that NCDMB management had approved the Board’s purpose-built facility in Opolo, along the Opolo-Elebele Road in Yenagoa, as a training centre for Nigerian Content Academy programmes.
The inaugural lecture, titled “Understanding the Activities and Processes of the Planning, Research and Statistics Directorate,” was delivered by the Manager of the Planning and Policy Development Department, Engr. Mofe Megbele.
Megbele examined the directorate’s responsibilities, including planning and policy development, expatriate quota administration, research and development, technology commercialisation and innovation, NOGIC JQS, the Nigerian Content Compliance Framework, e-Marketplace and stakeholder engagement.
He explained that the directorate comprises two major divisions — Planning and Policy Development, and Research and Statistics Development — each headed by a general manager.
According to him, the Planning and Policy Development Department was established in September 2018 pursuant to Section 70 of the NOGICD Act and is responsible for developing policies and guidelines for industry stakeholders and monitoring their implementation.
The LearnFest Lecture Series will be held monthly over the next nine months, with each edition focusing on a different NCDMB directorate.
Attendance will be mandatory for NCDMB personnel, physically or virtually, while participation is expected to be extended subsequently to stakeholders across Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
