NDCMB promotes local content in oil and gas industry with $50m research fund – Ogbe, Executive Secretary

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, NDCMB, has said it is funding research and innovation in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector with its $50 million Research and Development Fund.

The Research and Development Fund was established in 2020, and is one of the facilities the NDCMB leverages on to promote local content in the Nigerian oil and gas industry.

Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Felix Ogbe disclosed this on Wednesday at the opening session of the SciBiz 2024 annual conference, themed: ‘Integrating Research, Innovation, and Policy: Triple Helix Pathway to Research Commercialisation’.

Ogbe, who was represented by the General Manager of Research and Development, Silas Ajimijaye, stressed the NDCMB’s commitment to transforming research works into new products and services.

He also spoke of the need to create an ecosystem where researchers, investors and the government can interact. According to the NDCMB boss, “Research and innovation represent the lifeblood of the Nigerian oil industry”.

According to him, such partnerships can enhance local efforts and enable Nigeria to become a key player in global innovation.

He further explained that the $50 million Research and Development Fund was established in 2000 to ensure sustainability in research and innovation.

“So, we have the $50 million Nigeria Content Research and Development Fund, created by the Board in 2020. It is designed to provide the much-needed research funding within the oil and gas research and development space.”

The NDCMB is currently sponsoring about 14 applied research projects, which are at various stages of completion, Ogbe further disclosed.

“We intend to onboard more impactful research projects in the coming months,” the Executive Secretary added.

Also speaking at the event, the President of Triple Helix Nigeria, Abdulmalik Halilu, noted that the organization is committed to promoting research and innovation efforts in Nigeria and across Africa.

Halilu, who is equally the Director of Monitoring and Evaluation at NCDMB, stressed that every human progress is a product of innovation.

According to him, universities and other academic institutions should play a critical role in the commercialisation of research.

“Research should transcend the boundaries of laboratories and classrooms to solving real life problems,” Halilu said.

Citing data from the World Intellectual Property Organisation, he noted that Nigeria has made progress in the area of research and innovation with annual patent applications rising from less than 100 in 2016 to over 400 in 2023.

“Nigeria has the potential to transform universities to solution-based entrepreneurial centres of excellence,” he noted.

“In this era of continuous consolidation, the vision of the university has fundamentally shifted. The role of universities is no longer confined to educating minds or advancing theoretical knowledge.

“We now recognise that universities play a central role in the commercialisation of research, turning knowledge into tangible progress that drives economic growth.

“The transition from educational research to commercialisation stems from an evolving frontier where academia, industry, and government collaborate under the Triple Helix model to ensure research transcends the boundaries of laboratories and classrooms, solving real-world problems and fostering economic prosperity.

“Our universities must not only produce quality academic qualifications but also turn research outcomes into products that create new businesses and generate returns for the university,” Halilu observed.

He further explained that the purpose of the conference is to ensure that research is translated into practical innovations that solve real-world problems.