NCCF Reforms Led by NCDMB to Ensure High-Impact Delivery

The Nigerian Content Consultative Forum (NCCF), a vital forum for promoting information exchange and cooperation among important industry stakeholders and suggesting interventions and policy changes, has begun a strategic reset by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB). Delivering high-impact Nigerian content results is the aim of the reset.

The Board emphasized the need for a clear, practical path to reposition the forum as a more effective driver of in-country capacity building in the oil and gas industry during a two-day retreat and the first half of the 2026 NCCF Steering Committee Meeting.

The retreat was opened by NCDMB Executive Secretary Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe called the meeting a “defining moment” in the NCCF’s history, pointing out that although the forum had grown steadily since its founding, a more thoughtful and planned approach was now necessary.

“The NCCF started out as a concept with a basic organization and an ambitious goal. We can now declare with confidence that this baby has developed because to your hard work, teamwork, and our mutual dedication to promoting Nigerian content,” he stated.

The NCDMB head, represented by the Acting Director, Planning, Research, and Statistics at NCDMB, emphasized that intentional planning must now be matched with progress and urged stakeholders to concentrate on long-term effect.

This retreat is a pivotal event, not simply another gathering. He continued, “We are here to contemplate, examine our present circumstances, and map out a more lucid, strategic future for the NCCF.”

He emphasized the Ernst & Young baseline study as a vital resource for comparing the forum to international best practices, finding any gaps, and repositioning it for increased relevance. However, he pointed out that people, not only structures, would be necessary for transformation.

“The quality of our engagement, the sincerity of our contributions, and our willingness to think beyond silos will depend on the success of the framework, policy guidelines, and roadmap we seek to develop,” Ogbe said, exhorting participants to be thoughtful, constructive, and daring in their discussions.

Mr. Damilola Aloba, an EY partner and session facilitator, gave the retreat’s background by outlining the three main goals of the engagement: strengthening aligned leadership on NCCF’s long-term direction; enhancing coordination between the Forum, its Sectoral Working Groups (SWGs), and NCDMB; and encouraging shared ownership of its mission.

“We want to ensure clear expectations across NCDMB, the NCCF Secretariat, and SWGs and strengthen aligned leadership on NCCF’s long-term direction,” Aloba stated.

In order to facilitate more seamless implementation and more consistent stakeholder engagement, he continued, the retreat will also improve coordination frameworks and guarantee a shared understanding of execution duties throughout the ecosystem.

Stakeholder discussions and benchmarking studies, according to Aloba, exposed significant structural and operational shortcomings, such as unclear strategic direction, project clearance delays, and a lack of transparency around post-idea decision-making.

He stated that “unrefined expectations and the absence of a supportive framework” further hindered performance and that “the forum lacks clear strategic direction from NCDMB, creating uncertainty among SWGs regarding expectations and deliverables.”

Other conclusions included the lack of clear criteria for evaluating project viability and impact, financial constraints brought on by reliance on NCDMB as the only source of funding, and inadequate project evaluation and tracking capabilities.

He recognized the great dedication of SWG members in spite of these obstacles, especially in allocating time and funds to capacity building projects throughout the oil and gas value chain.

NCCF is a statutory collaboration platform created under Sections 57 and 58 of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act, according to Engineer Bright Amatoru, Acting Deputy Manager of NCCF, who gave a summary of the forum’s operations earlier.

He clarified that the NCCF had been involving stakeholders from 12 SWGs since its founding in 2014 in order to pinpoint industry gaps, create solutions, and carry out focused interventions.

Amatoru stated, “Our role is to identify problems in the priority mapping and, beyond that, offer solutions through extensive stakeholder engagement.”

Amatoru highlighted two significant accomplishments: the Marine Assets Listing System, which aims to create an extensive database of marine assets in the oil and gas sector, and the creation of National Operational Standards, which harmonize capacity building programs throughout SWGs.

Along with programs like the Women in Oil and Gas Conference and mentorship workshop, which were organized earlier this year in association with the Diversity SWG, he also cited benchmarking studies in fabrication that sought to close scale gaps.

He did admit, though, that the forum’s capacity to efficiently prioritize actions was hampered by the lack of a well-defined strategic framework.

As of right now, there is no clear guidance on how to choose interventions. As we match industry standards with international best practices, that clarity is essential,” he stated.

The retreat is a component of NCDMB’s attempts to create a thorough NCCF strategic roadmap that is in line with both industry standards and the Board’s 10-year strategic plan.

In order to improve NCCF’s capacity to carry out its mandate within Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, participants are expected to produce workable ideas, improve governance frameworks, and establish a clear execution pathway.