When Dr Samuel Ogbuku assumed office as the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, on January 5, 2023, there was no iota of doubt that the Niger Delta states were poised for a new lease of life.
From the onset, the new helmsman minced no words when he announced that his era would look for new ways to do things differently. Dr Ogbuku instantly concerned himself with the enormous task of rapidly developing the Niger Delta region, which is the core mandate of the NDDC.
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Under Ogbuku’s leadership, the once unstable agency became a connoisseur of state- of-the-art projects across the Niger-Delta states, spinning-out projects upon projects, while consciously delivering a sublime mandate that had never been seen across board.
Today, the NDDC has deployed a transparent and accountable strategy in charting a new course in its administration. For the first time in her history, the Commission got the approval of the National Assembly to implement a significant budget tied to completing legacy or signature projects in the Niger Delta region.
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In 2024, the NDDC’s budget proposals, specifically designed to ensure projects completion was approved by the National Assembly through Dr Sam Ogbuku’s apparent outstanding composure, confidence and sincerity, which also won the Senate and, subsequently, the House of Representatives.
Since his appointment as the MD/CEO of the NDDC, Dr Ogbuku has continued to maintain a performance scorecard loaded with positive outcomes that have continued to inspire hope in the lives of indigenes in every Niger Delta state.
The Senate President, Chief Godswill Akpabio who represented President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the inauguration of a 600-meter Ibeno Bridge and the 6.87-kilometre Iko- Atabrikang-Opolom-IwuoAchang Road, in Akwa Ibom State, attested to this while showering praises on the NDDC Board and Management for delivering impactful projects in the Niger Delta region.
The Senate President emphasised that despite the enormous challenges of developing the region, the NDDC has risen to the task of executing projects that have improved people’s lives.
The 2024 budget of the NDDC was earmarked to complete 1,006 legacy projects across the region, targeting specific projects, including roads, bridges, electricity projects, school buildings, hospitals, shore protection, and reclamation.
For the first time ever, the current NDDC’s leadership commissioned five flagship projects in a space of 10 days, between May 18 and May 28, 2024. The awe-inspiring projects commissioned included the 9km Obehie-Oke-Ikpe road in Ukwa West LGA, Abia State; the 27.5 kilometre Ogbia -Nembe Road, constructed in partnership with Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC; the 1×15MVA 33/11KV electricity injection substation in Amufi, Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area in Benin City, Edo State; the 45km double-circuit 33KV feeder line from Omotosho Power Station to Okitipupa, Ondo State and the NDDC 6km Iko-Atabrikang-Akata-Opulom-Ikot Inwang-Okoroutip- Iwochang Road and 600m Ibeno Bridge in Ibeno LGA, Akwa Ibom State.
These landmark projects, among the 92 infrastructure projects completed at a cost of N84 billion across the nine mandate states of the NDDC, speak of the impact the Commission is making in the quest to quicken the pace of development in Nigeria’s oil-rich region.
In 2025, the NDDC has spearheaded key developmental projects for 2025 including but not limited to the Kaa-Ataba Bridge in Rivers State, which is a 1.2 km bridge and road project connecting Andoni and Kana local government areas and serving as an alternative route to Bonny Island, the Nasak Junction AON Road and Bridge in Akwa Ibom State; a 30 km road and bridge linking communities to Abia State, the Okirika- Borikiri Bridge in Rivers State, which is another laudable legacy project slated for revitalization and completion, the Bonny Ring Road in Rivers State which is a 27.14 km road project, including 13 bridges, that will connect Bonny Town with surrounding communities, and an emergency reconstruction project providing regional connectivity to Abia State, which is the Oibo Road Network.
Dr Ogbuku has significantly remobilized contractors to complete abandoned projects aimed at improving interstate transportation and socio-economic activities.
His astute leadership has also seen the commission collaborate with International Oil Companies (IOCs), such as Nigeria LNG (NLNG), to fund and facilitate projects like the Bonny Ring Road Even with the huge portfolio of projects, Ogbuku succinctly underscores that the NDDC is not just about infrastructure development.
Spurred by this in-depth consciousness beyond infrastructural development to fostering business and enterprise developments in the region, the Dr Ogbuku led leadership of the NDDC promoted the establishment of the Niger Delta Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Trade, Mines and Agriculture (NDCCITMA).
This noble initiative has served as a vital platform for business development and investment, aiming to provide support for businesses, skill training, job creation, while also accelerating economic activity across Niger Delta communities.
Recent projects by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) include the inauguration of an 8.1km road network in Calabar in June 2025 to mark its 25th anniversary, a donation of electrical facilities to a Nigerian Army brigade in Bayelsa State in September 2025, and the commissioning of a 45km double-circuit 33KV feeder line in Ondo State, among others. These are verifiable data.
The commission also inaugurated a 45km double-circuit 33KV feeder line in Ondo State, providing power to areas that had been without it for years.
Additionally, they installed transformers in various communities, such as in Ikwerre LGA, Rivers State, and Oshimili South LGA, Delta State. Of notable prominence also, is the commissioning of solar electricity projects across Niger Delta communities, which had hitherto been subject to years of neglect and darkness.
One of such is the completion of a solar-powered water project in, Amavo Community, Osisioma Ngwa L.G.A, Abia State in February 2025 as part of NDDC’s broader focus on rural development and clean energy.
The groundbreaking Light Up the Niger Delta Project undertaken by the NDDC has opened up several new frontiers for growth and development.
From Okpanam-Ibusa Road/Amachi Road in Delta State, Udaba-Ekperi community in Edo State, to several areas within Obio/Akpor L.G.A in Rivers State, as well as the NYSC State Secretariat in Port Harcourt, solar powered streetlights have transformed the way people live and work while improving security.
The streetlight program is designed to have a positive impact beyond illumination, addressing power issues, fostering a new economy, and promoting peace in the region.
According to Dr Ogbuku: “Our target is to ensure that every community in the Niger Delta region is powered by solar, which is a renewable and cheap for of energy.
Additionally, we will establish industrial clusters powered by solar energy, which will enhance the agricultural value chain.’ In Bayelsa, the residents have commended the NDDC for the solar-powered light.
Emeka Ojuogu lauded the NDDC saying, “Before now, some politicians described the state as a forest capital because it is always dark due to poor epileptic power supply. But now, there seems to be no street without powered street lights.”
The people of Ayama in Gbarain Kingdom of Bayelsa State, Etegwe/Tombia roundabout, Mbiama/Yenagoa road, Sanni Abacha express road, Azikoro/Ekeki area expressed gratitude to the NDDC management for considering their community in the award and completion of solar-powered streetlight projects.
Driving through Kaima, Odi and Opokuma has been described as a refreshing experience due to the distinctive lighting across the communities. Indigenes of the Niger Delta have expressed a truism that this is the first time they have felt the impact of the leadership and management of the NDDC since its inception.
Buoyed by his overwhelming transformation of communities across the Niger Delta, the alumni of Dr Samuel Ogbuku, close family members, friends and associates, came together with their personal resources to host a heart-warming birthday celebration for him as he clocked 50.
They deemed this the only way to recognize and celebrate his trail-blazing footprints as the MD/CEO of the NDDC.
Rumours of lavishing state-owned resources on his birthday have been continually sponsored by dishonest individuals bent on tarnishing the rising image of the NDDC Boss.
The NDDC has been plagued by lackluster leadership under past administrations until the advent of Pres. Bola Tinubu’s appointment of Dr Samuel Ogbuku. Ogbuku has ceaselessly promoted transparency at the NDDC, and has earned a reputation for being the most principled MD.
As he continues to seek out new projects for the development of people of the Niger Delta, it is commendable to call on all and sundry to sheathe their swords of dishonest and false propaganda against an incorruptible Ogbuku, and join the bandwagon of a man destined to remain untainted.
*Romeo Bekeyei Secretary, Forum of Concerned Youths of Niger Delta Oil Host Communities writes from Bayelsa
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