Business
NDDC Project HOPE: The Hope for Niger Delta Youths
By
Martins Ogolo.
“The youth is the HOPE of our future.”
– Jose Rizal
The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), a Federal Government Agency established 24 years ago by Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo with the oversight responsibility of facilitating a rapid socio-economic and overall growth of the people, making economically prosperous and politically stable. The leadership of this commission has at different points in time, been rallied to bad and corrupt leaders who did nothing but milk the Interventionist Agency dry. In a bid to redraft its pattern with critical focus of her creed”making a difference ” consultations, roundtable talk shops and recommendations were drawn to see to sustainable practice of this creed, hence the H. O. P. E for NigerDelta initiative.
Holistic Opportunities Programme/Projects for Engagements, aka “HOPE,” the “heartbeat” of the 7th board of the Niger Delta Development Commission, is aimed at transforming the fortunes of Niger Delta Youths, as the region has long been plagued with poverty and insecurity amongst several other social vices, because of the need to ultimately change the narrative of the Niger Delta region.
The workaholic Managing Director of the NDDC; Chief Samuel Ogbuku, PhD., who is a visionary administrator , directed Ambassador Blessing Fubara, the resource consultant, & his team to expanded the scope of PROJECT HOPE , to cover more areas as his mantra has always been “Signature projects that make a difference in the lives of Niger Deltans”. Dr Ogbuku’s major concern, is to completely change the narrative of Niger Delta Youths with a program that touches every youth no matter their level of education and exposure. Members 7th of the board quickly keyed into the idea as they saw workable models in line with the vision of the NDDC, which is “Making A Difference”. The resource consultant, Amb. Fubara had hinted that project HOPE is 18 years old and no board in the past understood the vision until the Dr. Samuel Ogbuku’s led board who see the possibilities of reassuring H.O.P.E to the youths and people of Niger Delta region with the initiative.
Project HOPE covers: Niger Delta Youths Entrepreneurial Support Scheme (NDESS), Niger Delta Music and Arts Project (NDMAP), PROJECT 9.9.9, & Science & Technology.
Niger Delta Youths Entrepreneurial Support Scheme (NDESS): This scheme is designed to properly identify active and responsible new businesses, do proper Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) registrations and documentations for such businesses and startups. NDESS also is designed to enable committed businesses from the region to grow into more coordinated and profitable ventures while putting into cognizance the importance of business certification and adequate regularization and financial documentations. The Scheme will incubate passionate and hopeful new businesses and help them grow organically into a full structured enterprising venture with the requisite mentorship and monitoring paraphernalia required for a value-based system.
The Niger Delta Music and Art Project (NDMAP) is designed to stimulate prospects for active and passionate young creatives/Entertainers. Preserve and Promote the rich cultural heritage of the Niger delta region through music and art. To also, Provide a platform for indigenous creatives to showcase their talent, fostering a sense of pride and identity within the region. The Niger Delta Music and Arts Project are designed to create platforms, enable talents, and empower creatives in five considered skills set of this specimen: Music production, Cinematography, Creative content, Movie.
Project 9,000 Jobs, 9 Industries in 9 Months (9.9.9)
This specimen (project) has been duly designed to harness and secure alternative sources of funding from International, National, Multinational, Community/government, and Private Sector Investors in the areas of shared PPP interest, geared towards achieving long-lasting, focused, and profitable drive. The Model shall be executed in three Phases before Transfer: Phase 1 – Immediate, Phase 2 – Intermediate, Phase 3 – Management.
At the immediate phase, project hope will acquire lands and required mechanisms, onboard target communities, etc. The intermediate phase involves setting up the different project multi-agro industries, according to individual State’s specimen, Onward deployment, activation, and commencement of the overall project design. The management phase involves the entire project management Phase before Transfer.
The idea is to engage 1,000 youths in each of the 9 Niger Delta States which will overall translate to 9,000 Jobs.
Science & Technology Program of project hope covers everything as regards to equipping Niger Delta Youths with the required Information technology (IT) skills which include: Cybersecurity, database administration, web development, cloud engineering, artificial intelligence (AI), networking, software development, systems analysis, etc. Since Tech is the new liquid gold, the NDDC’s Holistic Opportunity Programs Empowerment (HOPE) will train willing Niger Delta youths between 6-9 months ensuring they are grounded and can compete with tech experts from around the Globe, giving them an advantage and ease to create employment for themselves as well as securing well-paid jobs.
End Note:
Project HOPE is truly the Hope for Niger Delta youths as it will address youths of the region irrespective of their background, exposure or educational/technical qualifications provided they are within 18-45. For the first time since the inception of NDDC, this is a program that holistically addresses the needs of Niger Delta region youths. So whether the youth has interest in agriculture, IT, Music & Arts, entrepreneurship or skilled labor, project hope will empower them to compete at the highest level with youths from other regions. Kudos to the record breaking Chief Samuel Ogbuku PhD., MD/CEO NDDC for approving and enlarging the scope of the program. With this, The future of Niger Delta Youths is SECURED.
To register in project HOPE database or for inquiries kindly click:
https://ndjobsskillsdb.ng/data-register/
INDEED PROJECT HOPE IS THE HOPE FOR NIGER DELTA YOUTHS
Martins Ogolo
Public Affairs Analyst.
martins.ogolo@yahoo.com
By Chinedu Sabastine
ENUGU – Value Circle Africa (VCA), a marketing outfit dealing in organic food products, has launched operations in Enugu, promising to promote health and wealth creation among millions of Africans.
The company, which markets products including soya bean oil, swallow, fufu and Ganadima mushroom, said it was targeting 20 million Africans through its business model.
Speaking at the unveiling in Enugu, Chairman of VCA, Elder Dennis Ogbonnaya Nwankwo, claimed that participants who purchase products worth N65,000 could earn up to N550,000 over six months under the company’s reward scheme.
Nwankwo said VCA was an offshoot of Nature’s Renaissance International Limited (NRI), founded by High Chief Clinton Brown Odiagbe.
He explained that the initiative was designed to share the company’s profits with customers rather than concentrate its earnings on business expansion.
According to him, a participant who purchases products worth N65,000 would receive N50,000 initially, with subsequent monthly payments of N100,000, subject to the company’s stated terms.
He further claimed that an investment of N6.5 million could yield about N55 million within six months.
Nwankwo said the company manufactured its organic products and intended to use the proceeds to improve the financial circumstances and health of its customers.
“Every other company is marketing its products and making its profit. We manufacture our organic products, including soya bean oil, swallow, fufu and Ganadima mushroom.
“But we decided that we should not use the money to establish an airline or acquire more estates. Instead, we decided to share it with people around us,” he said.
He added that the company encouraged participants to reinvest their earnings to build sustainable financial capacity.
“We believe that if we continue to do this, we will also train people not to consume all the money they earn but to reinvest it. That is how we intend to wipe away poverty,” he said.
The VCA chairman urged interested persons to participate in the scheme, claiming that those who borrowed N65,000 to purchase the products could repay their loans from subsequent payments.
He, however, did not provide independently verified financial records to substantiate the returns being promised.
One of the company’s beneficiaries, Pastor David Ime Jesus, said he joined the scheme in June 2026 and had received payments under the arrangement.
“I began to invest in June and have been earning N100,000 every month since the initial N50,000 I earned in July,” he said.
Business
No Bad Blood Over New Cement Factories, But Our Mining Rights Run Till 2045 — Ibeto Tells Ebonyi Govt
ABAKALIKI, EBONYI STATE — Billionaire industrialist and Chairman of Ibeto Group, Dr. Cletus Ibeto, has clarified his position on plans by the Ebonyi State Government to establish a new cement manufacturing plant, saying he has no objection to fresh investment in the state provided his company’s existing mining rights are respected.
Ibeto, who is also a core investor in the Nigerian Cement Company (Nigercem), said the proposed development should not interfere with areas covered by valid mining leases held by his company.
“We are not against the establishment of new cement factories in Ebonyi State. However, such developments must not interfere with or overlap the specific areas where Ibeto Group holds valid Mining Lease Licences issued by the Federal Ministry,” Ibeto stated.
He said the company’s statutory mining leases covering limestone deposits in the Nkalagu axis remain valid until 2045.
Ibeto stressed the need for proper delineation and mapping of mining areas to prevent conflicts between existing title holders and new investors seeking to establish businesses in the state.
Under Nigeria’s legal framework, mineral resources are vested in the Federal Government, with mineral titles administered through the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development and the Mining Cadastre Office.
Nigercem Ready to Resume Operations
Addressing concerns over the future of the historic Nigercem plant, Ibeto said Ibeto Group remains committed to reviving the facility and is ready to commence work once outstanding administrative issues with the state government are resolved.
He said the company’s position should not be interpreted as opposition to new investment in Ebonyi, stressing that his concern was the protection of legally acquired mining rights.
The development could pave the way for both the revival of Nigercem and the entry of new investors into Ebonyi’s cement industry, provided the respective mining areas are clearly mapped out and existing legal titles are respected.
Business
Patience Jonathan Hails Azikel Boss Eruani as ‘Small Boy’ She Mentored Into Billionaire League
She said her guidance was behind his bold entry into big business at a relatively young age.
The former First Lady spoke on Tuesday in a video which went viral on Thursday during an inspection tour of the Azikel Refinery in Obunagha, Bayelsa State, alongside other dignitaries.
She said she personally introduced Eruani to billionaire businessmen, Aliko Dangote and Aminu Dantata, and pushed him to aspire to their level despite being the youngest among them.
“He’s a boy that I brought up. We are always together. Although he’s the little one among us when we are friends — Dangote, Seyi, Dantata, Eruani — among us, he’s the smallest. But I made sure he followed the Dangotes, he followed Dantata.
“Because I’m a woman in their midst, I made sure I told this small boy, ‘Go and follow them, and stop the grammar.’ But when he told me that one day he would be like Dangote, I said, ‘You’re thinking too high.’ I prayed to God to grant him his heart’s desire,” she said.
The former First Lady also recalled how the immediate past APC administration under Muhammadu Buhari initially failed to grant Eruani a refinery licence before eventually approving three.
“During the Buhari administration, he and others came to me and told me they were going to apply for a refinery. I told him, ‘Eruani, your brother, the President, did not give you a refinery.
“Is it the APC government that will give you one?’ I prayed it would happen. But later, they came back and told me they had been given three refineries,” she said.
The 25,000 barrels-per-day plant is a private hydro-skimming refinery designed to process condensate into petrol, diesel, aviation fuel, kerosene and other products.
It is set to become Nigeria’s second-largest full-slate refinery and the first major privately owned refinery in the Niger Delta.
The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Niger Delta Development Commission, Samuel Ogbuku, who joined the inspection tour, commended Eruani for his perseverance, noting that he had attended the project’s groundbreaking ceremony eight years ago.
Ogbuku described the refinery as an inspiration and a potential catalyst for investment, job creation and economic growth in Bayelsa State, and urged residents, particularly youths, to key into the opportunities it would create.
He also praised the Bayelsa State Government for improving road infrastructure leading to the refinery site and called for continued support for the project.
Governor Douye Diri, who was represented at the inspection by his deputy, Peter Akpe, has consistently backed the project, which is expected to employ hundreds of workers and drive industrialisation in the state.
Other dignitaries at the event included the Chairman of the Bayelsa State Council of Traditional Rulers, King Bubaraye Dakolo; Vice President of Azikel Group, Presley Asemota; and Isaac Yalah, among others.
A market check on Tuesday showed that NNPCL outlets in Abuja and nearby areas adjusted their petrol price from N1,155 per litre to N1,270 per litre.
The latest adjustment represents an increase of N115 per litre by the state-owned oil company.
The new price change follows recent increases by depot owners and petroleum marketers, who have adjusted their rates twice within a week.
The latest development also comes days after Dangote Refinery resumed the sale of refined petroleum products in dollars, a move that has raised concerns among industry players over the direction of fuel pricing in the country.
The Federal Government has disclosed that 13 of the 50 oil and gas blocks offered in the 2025 Licensing Round will be returned to the licensing basket after failing to attract bids from prospective investors.
The Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, disclosed this on Tuesday at the 2025 Commercial Bid Conference in Abuja.
Eyesan said that although 50 blocks were initially put up for bidding, prospective investors showed interest in only 37.
“At the end of the exercise, we had 50 blocks on offer, but we only had representation for 37 of those 50 blocks. Thirteen of those blocks will be returning back to the basket,” she said.
She further disclosed that 143 companies participated in the commercial bid process, submitting about 200 bids for the available oil and gas assets.
“We have a total of 143 companies showing interest for 200 bids. That, for us, was remarkable, and I must say thank you,” Eyesan stated.
According to her, nearly 300 companies initially expressed interest in the licensing round, which she described as a sign of renewed investor confidence in Nigeria’s upstream petroleum sector.
“When we started the journey, we got interest from almost 300 companies. I repeat, almost 300 companies. That, in my view, was an indication that the tide has turned for Nigeria,” she said.
She explained that the number of interested companies was reduced to 196 following the prequalification stage, before the process moved to the technical and commercial evaluation phases.
“From the almost 300 interests that we got, we moved to the pre-qualification stage, and that number was pruned down to 196,” she added.
The 2025 Licensing Round was launched on November 11, 2025, in accordance with the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, with 50 oil and gas blocks put up for bidding across seven sedimentary basins.
The assets comprise 16 Niger Delta onshore blocks, 18 shallow-water blocks, one deep offshore block, three blocks in the Benin Basin, four in the Anambra Basin, four in the Chad Basin and four in the Benue Trough.
The bid portal opened on December 1, 2025, while a pre-bid conference was held in Lagos on January 14, 2026, to provide prospective investors with guidance on the bidding requirements.
Registration and prequalification submissions closed on February 27, 2026, with the prequalification process completed on March 16.
The NUPRC said winning bids are being determined through a weighted evaluation that considers signature bonus commitments, proposed work programmes and performance security. The process combines technical and commercial scores rather than relying solely on financial offers.
The framework is aimed at ensuring that Nigeria’s petroleum assets are awarded to investors with the financial capacity, technical expertise and operational strength required to accelerate exploration and production in the country’s upstream sector.
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