NCDMB inspects youth training programme in Rivers, reaffirms commitment to skills development

The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, embarked on an inspection tour of an intensive youth training programme sponsored by the Board at the Centre for Marine and Offshore Technology Development (CMOTD), Rivers State University (RSU), Port Harcourt.

The programme, which currently trains 305 Nigerian youths, focuses on specialised technical skills relevant to the oil and gas industry.

Spread across seven high-demand technical areas, the training covers Automation, Instrumentation and Control, Mechanical/Process Piping and System Design, Pressure Vessel and Heat Exchangers Design (PV-ELITE), Electrical Power Transformer Repairs and Maintenance, Industrial/Practical Ship Design and Construction, Oil Well Surveillance and Enhancement Analysis, Big Data Analytics, and International-Class Welding, Fabrication and Qualification.

Funded fully by the NCDMB, the four-month training scheme forms part of the Board’s Human Capacity Development initiative, strategically designed to bridge identified skill gaps and strengthen indigenous competence in the oil and gas sector.

The trainees were carefully selected from the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Joint Qualification System (NOGICJQS), the central database for technical and human competencies in the industry.

Addressing the trainees during the inspection, Engr. Ogbe urged them to take full advantage of the training opportunity, stressing that the skills being taught are globally competitive and in high demand across the oil and gas value chain.

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He assured that the NCDMB remains fully committed to empowering Nigerians with critical technical expertise, not only to support the energy sector but also to contribute meaningfully to national economic growth in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s developmental agenda.

In addition to inspecting the ongoing training, the Executive Secretary also visited the newly constructed Advanced Marine Engineering and Offshore Engineering Research Centre within the university.

The structure, built by an international oil company under the Nigerian Content institutional development framework, is yet to be fully operational. Engr. Ogbe pledged that the Board would oversee its partitioning and furnishing to ensure it serves its intended research and development purpose.

He also promised to look into the delayed completion of staff quarters built for RSU by the NCDMB, noting that infrastructural support remains a key plank in strengthening academic and technical institutions aligned with Nigeria’s oil and gas development priorities.

Engr. Ogbe and his team were warmly received by the university’s Vice Chancellor, Prof. Isaac Zeb-Obipi; the National Chairman of the Nigerian Institution of Marine Engineers and Naval Architects (NIMENA) and Chairman, CMOTD Management Board, Engr. Dr. Sylvanus Eferebo; Dean, Faculty of Engineering, Prof. J. Akpa; and other top officials of the institution.

Speaking during the visit, Dr. Eferebo noted that Rivers State University has been officially designated by the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) as the Centre of Excellence for Marine Engineering in Nigeria.

He attributed this to the university’s dedicated marine studies programmes and the existence of three specialised marine centres on campus.

He further disclosed that 70 percent of CMOTD’s trainers are sourced from industry professionals, with the remaining 30 percent drawn from the academic staff of the university.

This composition, he explained, ensures that the training content is not only academically sound but also strongly aligned with current industry standards, in accordance with COREN’s directive that practising engineers play an active role in the formation of future professionals.