Lai Mohammed’s Firm to Partner NCDMB on Strategy Communication, Training, Others

•Ex-minister describes monitoring board’s tower as ‘hidden jewel of Nigeria’

Olusegun Samuel in Yenagoa

The immediate past Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said his lobbyist firm was willing to partner the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) on strategic communication, executive training and others.

The former minister made this known yesterday, when he led a delegation of the firm, Bruit Costaud, an affiliate of Ballard Partners USA, including a senior consultant, Government Affairs, Olajumoke Bamigbola, to the Executive Secretary, NCDMB, Mr Simbi Wabote, in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital.

He said the visit to the NCDMB Tower, where he described as a ‘Hidden Jewel of Nigeria’, was in a bid to bolster strategic communication, policy advocacy, and research initiatives.

Mohammed said: “Well, I came here to formally introduce our firm of policy advisory consultants to the Board and because what we do at our firm is to actually try to create a platform that would make the public and the private sector talk to one another rather than talk at one another.

“Our experience both in government, in the media and the private sector has shown that there is that yawning gap between policy and implementation largely due to the distrust that is harboured by both parties and then we believe that there is the need also to amplify the positive achievements of our organisations.

“When I made my presentation this evening, I dwelt more on what the Board, that is the NCDMB, would be able to achieve in ensuring that Nigerians actually take hold of the industry.

“The various partnership with the private sector either in modular oil refineries or gas processing or cylinder manufacturing, or even in parks.

“So, we believe that there is a need to support the excellent work already being done by the Communications Department of the Board by us trying to amplify it better.

“But there is another area that we believe is important, that is making the NCDMB the go-to organisation when it comes indigenising the industry and I am glad that the Executive Secretary also told us of his experience in Namibia where he went to present the paper and today it will appear as if now that is going to be the template that other countries would use in trying to get their own nationals to take possession of their own industry.

“So, basically what we do at BC is to bring the private sector and the public sector together and improve the use of doing business index overall.”

On area of collaboration with the board, the ex-Minister said the firm would want to partner them in the areas of strategic communications, strategic mapping and executive training.

He noted: “We have this ongoing agreement with the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) whereby we take advantage of their own in-built executive capacity building to extend to some of our clients. We also believe that in the area of corporate diplomacy, we can be very useful to the Board.”

On how he would cope with the private sector having spent much of his life in the public service, Mohammed said: “I realise that in the last 25 years of my life, I have either been in government, in the media or in politics.

“So, what I do now is just try to look at how I can reach out with my colleagues, leverage on those contacts, experiences, expertise and influence to ensure that Nigeria is a better place.”

On his part, the Executive Secretary, NCDMB, Simbi Wabote, said the Board was ready to partner with BC.

He thanked the team for the visit, saying they came at the right time when Nigeria was transiting from one administration to another.

He said: “This development creates a lot of gaps with regard to our communications channel in terms of mapping the stakeholders and being able to communicate clearly and we have no doubt that an organisation like yours would need help in areas like that.”