By Suleiman Aremu | Solaremnews | Monday, 21 September 2026
A high-level delegation from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), led by the country’s Minister of Hydrocarbons, His Excellency Simplice Stev Onanga, has arrived in Nigeria to understudy the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB)’s local content framework for the oil and gas industry.
The visit is aimed at gaining first-hand knowledge of Nigeria’s experience in developing indigenous capacity, strengthening local participation and retaining greater value within the country’s oil and gas sector.
Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, received the DRC delegation in Abuja on Monday and reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to sharing its experience with other African countries, particularly through the platform of the African Petroleum Producers Organisation (APPO).
Lokpobiri said Nigeria had achieved 61 per cent local content capacity since the enactment of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act 16 years ago.
According to him, the legislation has provided an important foundation for the development of indigenous participation in the Nigerian oil and gas industry, while creating opportunities for local companies to play increasingly significant roles across the sector.
The Minister also highlighted opportunities created by the divestment of onshore oil and gas assets by international oil companies (IOCs), noting that indigenous companies such as Renaissance Africa Energy Company, SEPLAT Energy Producing Unlimited and Oando Energy Resources Nigeria Limited had been able to acquire divested assets and expand their operations.
He said such developments demonstrated the growing capacity of Nigerian companies to take ownership of strategic oil and gas assets and contribute to the development of the industry.
“The solution to Africa’s energy challenges lies within Africa,” Lokpobiri declared, while disclosing that Nigeria currently produces more than 1.8 million barrels of crude oil per day.
The Minister explained that although deep offshore operations remained largely dominated by foreign companies, Nigerian oil and gas operating and service companies had increasingly taken control of land and shallow-water assets.
He said the development was helping to deepen local participation and strengthen Nigeria’s local content capacity.
Lokpobiri further explained that the implementation of local content initiatives in the Nigerian oil and gas industry was supported through industry funding, including the one per cent Nigerian Content Development Fund (NCDF) levy imposed on awarded upstream oil and gas contracts.
He assured the DRC delegation that Nigeria was prepared to openly share its experiences, lessons and institutional practices in developing local content, while conveying the greetings of President Bola Tinubu to the visiting delegation.
Speaking on behalf of the NCDMB Executive Secretary, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, the Director of Corporate Services, Dr. Abdulmalik Halilu, said the Board was ready to support the Democratic Republic of Congo in establishing a robust local content framework.
Halilu pointed to Nigeria’s institutional structures, regulatory coordination and strategic planning as some of the elements that had contributed to the country’s progress in local content development.
He said the NCDMB was implementing a 10-year strategic roadmap designed to increase in-country value retention to 70 per cent and create more than 300,000 direct jobs by 2027.
The DRC Minister of Hydrocarbons, Simplice Stev Onanga, expressed appreciation for Nigeria’s achievements in local content development and said the delegation was in the country to gain practical knowledge from Nigeria’s experience.
“We are proud to be in Nigeria to witness what has been accomplished,” Onanga said.
He described the study tour as an opportunity for the DRC to learn from Nigeria’s experience as it works towards strengthening local participation and capacity in its own oil and gas industry.
The study tour, which is expected to continue until Friday, will expose the DRC delegation to several institutions, facilities and industry stakeholders involved in Nigeria’s local content development.
The programme includes a visit to the NCDMB Headquarters in Bayelsa State, the Onne Free Zone fabrication workshops, an NLNG supplier session and the UniPort Gas Centre.
The delegation is also expected to visit the LADOL/Nigerdock yards, alongside other key engagements designed to provide practical insights into Nigeria’s local content policies, regulatory structures, industrial capacity and supplier development initiatives.
The visit underscores Nigeria’s growing role in sharing its local content experience with other African oil-producing countries seeking to build stronger indigenous participation and increase the economic value retained from their petroleum resources.
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