Nigeria Seals Oil, Gas Local Content Development Deal with Senegal

Peter Uzoho

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and the Senegalese Petroleum Industry have agreed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Nigeria’s support for the development of local content in Senegal’s oil and gas industry.

The agreement was reached during a strategy bilateral meeting in Lagos, between the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Mr. Simbi Wabote, and key officials of the Senegalese Petroleum Industry.

The deal was part of Nigeria’s strategic support to the development of local content across the African continent, which had already been extended to Ghana, Niger Republic, Uganda, Kenya, Gabon, Ugandan, and Congo Brazzaville.

THISDAY learnt that the deal was one of the yields from the maiden edition of the African Local Content Investment Forum (ALCIF) held Monday in Lagos, which was targeted at addressing funding and other challenges inhibiting the maximisation of huge hydrocarbon resources in Africa.

Speaking after the meeting, Wabote stated that the MoU would provide the pathway for the details of the collaboration, stressing the need for cooperation amongst African countries for the sustainable development of the oil and gas industry in the continent.

He added that Nigeria had acquired a lot of experience in local content development and was well-positioned to support other African nations that had discovered hydrocarbon resources recently.

The Leader of the Senegalese team and Technical Secretary, National Committee for Local Content in Senegal, Mor Ndiaye Mbaye, stated that their country was a new entrant into the oil and gas industry, adding that the MOU with Nigeria was to build local capacities and domesticate key operations in the sector, in-country.

He added that they decided to learn best practices in local content from Nigeria to make the implementation in their jurisdiction a reality.

The pioneer Executive Secretary of the NCDMB, Dr. Ernest Nwapa, described the planned MoU between Nigeria and Senegal as evidence that key initiatives of Nigerian content development had been consolidated over the years and had become a model for African countries.

Nwapa underscored the need for the Senegalese Government to take their local content policy seriously, design a plan for implementation and pay attention to capacity building of their locals.