Senate challenges NLNG on $43m projects

The Senate has called on the Nigeria Liquified Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited to prudently allocate the $43 million from the $4.3 billion Train-7 project for human capital development.

Chairman, Senate Committee on Local Content, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan made the call during an interactive session with representatives from NLNG, NCDMB, Saipem Contracting Limited, and Daewoo Engineering & Construction, on Tuesday at the National Assembly.

Akpoti-Uduaghan urged the NLNG to ensure compliance with the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act.

The Kogi Central Senator, according to a statement by her Chief Press Secretary, Arogbonlo Israel, in Abuja said the amount which represents one percent of the total project value, “is designated for human capacity development and institutional strengthening.”

She stressed the importance of transparency and effective utilisation of the fund to benefit Nigerians and enhance the country’s human capacity development and institutional strengthening.

 

Read Also: Senate passes N1.911trn NDDC’s 2024 budget
“Learning institutions from public primary to tertiary institutions nationwide should benefit from the $25.8million which is 60 per cent of the $43million worth of HCD projects owed Nigerians,” she said.

She also emphasised the infrastructure deficit in Nigeria’s primary and secondary schools by UBEC report which has it that about 40,000 classrooms are in deplorable conditions.

“It would do well if NLNG’s HCD schemes can support UBEC in their quest to provide befitting educational facilities,” she said.

She noted the discrepancies in reported figures for the NLNG Train-7 project, saying that if the project is valued at $6.5 billion, the human capacity framework would allocate $39 million for institutional strengthening, $13million for advanced-level training, and $13million for auxiliary training, totaling $65 million.

“If the project is worth $10 billion, the allocation would be $60 million for institutional strengthening and $20 million each for training, totaling $80 million worth of projects across the country.

The Kogi lawmaker explained that for projects in the oil and gas sector worth over $500 million, 1% of the project value is allocated to human capacity development and institutional strengthening.

“The committee is expected to collaborate with NLNG and NCDMB to establish a framework and select public institutions across the country that will benefit from the strategic programme, aimed at enhancing learning institutions’ capacity.

“The effective utilisation of these funds will positively impact the country’s human capacity development and institutional strengthening and will help address the issue of out-of-school children and improve learning structures in public institutions,” the statement added.

<<The Nation>>

RSS
Follow by Email