Senate backs amendment to Local Content Act

The Senate Committee on Local Content has said there is a need to amend the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content
Development (NOGICD) Act to clarify some vague and ambiguous expressions, revisit
the waiver provisions and rephrase the section on penalty for effectiveness. The
committee also expressed the need to undertake a holistic review of the Act to cover
other sectors of the economy to meet current realities. There is also the need,
according to the committee, to resuscitate technical and vocational education as a
vector for human capacity development. Science, engineering and technology curricula
in the universities and other tertiary institutions, the committee said, need to be
reformed and reorganised to meet requirements of the oil and gas industry.

These were the recommendations at the end of a three-day capacity building workshop
organised for the Committee in Accra, Ghana. After several insightful presentations
on the NCDMB’s mandate, its operation, the regulatory framework in the oil industry,
the journey so far and the challenges of enforcing compliance, all members of the
committee (eight senators) in attendance lauded the NCDMB for the significant
milestones recorded, despite very many drawbacks. It also praised the Board for its
strategic implementation of the NOGICD Act and the steady growth in local
capacities.