Mkpoikana Udoma
Port Harcourt — The Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, has released N10 billion to the Niger Delta Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Trade, Mines and Agriculture, NDCCITMA, to stimulate entrepreneurship and economic growth in the Niger Delta region.
Announcing the release of the fund during the inauguration of the NDCCITMA board of directors in Port Harcourt, the NDDC Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, noted that the N10 billion was the first instalment of the N30billion that the Commission had promised to invest in the Chamber of Commerce.
Ogbuku, who was represented by the NDDC Executive Director of Finance and Administration, Alabo Boma Iyaye, reiterated the Commission’s commitment to the growth of commerce and trade in the region.
He said, “During the flag-off ceremony of the sensitisation programme, I mentioned that the commission will be investing N30 billion in the Enterprise Development scheme, to be managed by NDCCITMA, to support entrepreneurs in our region at the nano, micro, and small-scale levels.
“I am here to reaffirm that promise. Today, we shall fulfil the promise by releasing N10 billion to the NDCCITMA-designated bank for the Immediate commencement of the entrepreneurs’ development programme.
We look forward to partnering with NDCCITMA to drive the growth of the economies of the states and the region as a whole. NDCCITMA and the commission will work out the operational dynamics for the programme.
“The commission has approved 5000 businesses to kick-start this initiative. We assure you that NDDC is poised to grow the region in commerce and trade through encouraging everyone to be part of the NDCCITMA activities.”
The Managing Director advised all contractors and vendors in the NDDC to ensure they register with the NDCCITMA by July 31, 2025.
“The commission would also like to advise all current and intending vendors in NDDC to register with NDCCITMA, as doing so will be an added advantage for consideration of possible and continued patronage by the commission. Between now and July 31st, every NDDC contractor must be duly registered with the NDCCITMA,” Ogbuku noted.
In his welcome address, the NDDC Executive Director Projects, Sir Victor Antai, said that the Commission was not only inaugurating the NDCCITMA Board of Directors but celebrating the birth of a new dawn for the Niger Delta region as a platform for business development in the Niger Delta had been created.
Antai, who was represented by the NDDC Director of Commercial and Industrial Development, Mrs. Lyna Okara, said that the operational wheels of the NDCCITMA had been formally set in motion.
He emphasised that the Board of Directors of NDCCITMA was carefully selected and comprised seasoned men and women, professionals who had distinguished themselves in their various fields.
Antai declared, “Today we enter a new chapter in the region, a chapter that opens the way to rewrite the region’s development agenda, where business development through trade, commerce, industry, and agriculture will take centre stage.”
In his remarks, the Board chairman, NDCCITMA, Ambassador Idaere Ogan, affirmed the Chambers’ readiness to work with the NDDC to achieve its vision of transforming the Niger Delta region.
He said, “We align fully with the NDDC’s vision to transform the Niger Delta into a region that is economically prosperous, socially stable, ecologically regenerative and politically principled.
“The NDCCITMA is a tool in achieving this transformation. Our purpose is clear: to serve as a catalyst for development across all tiers of the economy, from nano- and micro-businesses to medium-sized enterprises and large industries.
Ogan said further: “This platform will facilitate job creation, skills development, innovation, export growth and productive partnerships.”
