The Niger Delta Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Trade, Mines and Agriculture (NDCCITMA) has unveiled plans to establish an initial N5 billion fund to support businesses and promote enterprise development across the Niger Delta region.
The initiative is aimed at giving practical expression to the vision of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to build a stronger, more productive and investment-driven regional economy.
Speaking at the ongoing Niger Delta Economic and Investment Summit in Port Harcourt, stakeholders emphasised that the region’s greatest asset is its people, rather than its oil, gas and other natural resources.
The summit noted that sustainable economic growth could only be achieved through deliberate investment in human capital, skills development, entrepreneurship and the productive capacity of the people of the Niger Delta.
Participants also called for stronger collaboration among the nine Niger Delta states, stressing the need to begin viewing the region as a single economic bloc with shared development priorities.
The establishment of a regional think tank was advocated to bring together experts from government, business, academia and other sectors. The proposed body would generate policy ideas and provide practical solutions to the challenges affecting the region’s economic development.
Stakeholders further stressed the need to create an enabling environment capable of attracting and retaining investors. They maintained that the people of the Niger Delta must be active participants and direct beneficiaries of the investment opportunities generated from the region’s natural resources.
“Development must no longer happen around our people; it must happen with them and for them,” the summit emphasised.
The states were also urged to collaborate on the development of critical infrastructure, including power generation and distribution systems, rail networks and regional roads.
According to stakeholders, joint infrastructure projects would strengthen economic integration, reduce the cost of doing business and unlock the vast opportunities available across the region.
Concern was also expressed over the persistent capital flight from the Niger Delta, with participants noting that many companies extract significant value from the region’s resources without creating commensurate employment, investment and economic opportunities for the people.
The leadership of NDCCITMA and other stakeholders were commended for initiating a new conversation on the economic future of the Niger Delta.
The NDDC reaffirmed its commitment to working with the state governments, chambers of commerce, investors and other relevant stakeholders to harmonise development efforts, eliminate duplication and ensure that resources are deployed to projects capable of delivering the greatest impact.
The summit concluded that the time had come for the Niger Delta to move from potential to productivity, from ideas to implementation and from dependence on a rent-based economy to a diversified regional economy driven by enterprise, innovation and investment.
Participants maintained that the Niger Delta possesses the resources and human capital required to become one of Africa’s leading economic regions, but stressed that achieving this ambition would require deliberate action, sustained collaboration and effective execution.
