Since his appointment as Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) on December 7, 2023, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe has positioned the Board to play a crucial role in advancing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's economic reform agenda. The NCDMB focuses on ensuring that activities in Nigeria's strategic oil and gas industry create opportunities for local companies, workers, manufacturers, professionals, and communities. By promoting local content, the Board aims to drive industrial development, job creation, technology transfer, and investment attraction.
The NCDMB has supported Tinubu's 2024 Presidential Directives on local-content compliance, reducing petroleum-sector contracting costs and timelines. The directives aim to make oil and gas projects more competitive, eliminate intermediaries, and ensure qualified Nigerian companies receive opportunities based on proven capabilities. In response, the NCDMB streamlined its approval processes, reducing the contracting cycle to a six-month target and its touchpoints from nine to five. This enables investments to move quickly from approval to project execution, improving Nigeria's investment climate.
Under Ogbe's leadership, the NCDMB has continued to build the capacity of indigenous oil and gas companies. The Board's interventions aim to ensure Nigerian companies acquire the necessary equipment, financing, technology, expertise, and market access to participate in the oil and gas value chain. In December 2025, Ogbe announced a $100 million Equity Investment Scheme to provide equity financing for high-growth indigenous energy-service companies. This initiative was developed in partnership with the Bank of Industry.
The NCDMB and the Bank of Industry inaugurated the Investment Committee of the Nigerian Content Equity Fund in August 2026, setting the stage for implementing the $100 million financing window. The fund provides long-term financing in exchange for equity, rather than relying solely on conventional debt. This represents a significant connection between local-content policy and the broader economic objective of strengthening Nigerian enterprises.
The NCDMB under Ogbe has also aligned with the Tinubu administration's "Nigeria First" policy, which encourages the patronage of locally produced goods and services. In July 2025, Ogbe pledged the NCDMB's commitment to implementing the policy, expanding the meaning of Nigerian Content beyond compliance certificates and procurement rules. The Board has developed a dedicated Nigeria First procurement policy and integrated the principle into the review of Nigerian Content Plans and other regulatory processes.
The NCDMB's support for local manufacturing is another area where its programmes intersect with the Federal Government's economic objectives. The Board encourages Nigerian manufacturers to produce equipment and consumables required by the oil and gas industry. For example, it supports companies like Yikodeen, whose expanded Nigerian manufacturing facility produces industrial safety footwear. The objective is not only to ensure Nigerian products are manufactured but also utilised within the country's oil and gas industry.
The NCDMB's programmes also promote economic inclusion, particularly through community participation. In 2025, the Board announced a restructuring of its N50 billion Community Contractors Financing Scheme to improve access to financing for contractors from oil-producing communities. This initiative includes measures to make financing more accessible and increase participation in the oil and gas value chain, contributing to economic development in the oil-producing region.
Key points
- The NCDMB has reduced its contracting touchpoints from nine to five and aims to reduce the contracting cycle to six months.
- The Board has introduced a $100 million Equity Investment Scheme to support high-growth indigenous energy-service companies.
- The NCDMB has pledged to implement the "Nigeria First" policy, promoting the patronage of locally produced goods and services.
