Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, says plans are in the pipeline for the establishment of industrial clusters in nine states of the Niger Delta.
According to him, the Federal Government will make provisions for the building of the clusters in the 2020 budget of Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC.
Akpabio said this was part of government’s Post Amnesty initiative, PAI, targeting ex-agitators, who had completed their training in its Amnesty Programme.
A statement issued by the Director of Corporate Affairs, NDDC, Mr. Charles Odili, on Saturday said the minister spoke at a meeting with management staff of the Commission in Port Harcourt.
The statement quoted the minister as saying: “The Federal Government is planning to start a PAI, where industrial clusters will be established across the region to engage youths that graduated from current Amnesty Programme.
“We know that the amnesty programme will come to end someday, with the youths forced to fall back on NDDC.
“So, the nine Niger Delta states will have the industrial clusters that would absorb between 1,000 to 2,000 youths with different skills set.
“We are going to make provision for this in the 2020 budget of NDDC. To this end, the ministry and the commission will collaborate to realise this goal.”
Akpabio also disclosed that the President has given his ministry the mandate to supervise the commission, saying: “So, we are now in marriage. Currently, there is a general consensus that NDDC could have done better than it has done in the past.
“We have to work together to ensure that NDDC lives up to the expectations as well as curtail its procurement activities and reduce the number of new projects and programmes.
“As at today, the commission has 12,000 ongoing projects with many of them experiencing funding challenges.
“NDDC must prioritise signature projects in each of the nine Niger Delta states. The projects should be properly funded, monitored and supervised to ensure prompt delivery.”
Akpabio, who was accompanied by Minister of State for Niger Delta Affairs, Festus Keyamo, however, commended the NDDC for completing the N24 billion 29-kilometer Ogbia-Nembe road project in Bayelsa.
He said the road, constructed by NDDC and Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC, which connected 14 communities had opened the area to renewed economic and agricultural growth.
The minister also inspected the ongoing construction of the 13-floor NDDC headquarters and a failed section of the Nkpolu stretch of the East-West Road in the city.
He directed the commission to complete and move into the building on or before March 2020 to save huge rents being paid to maintain its current office.
Acting Managing Director of the commission, Dr. Akwagaga Enyia, in his remarks said the commission was carrying out an internal audit of its finances to promote transparency.
