The Honourable Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, received the Niger Delta Man of the Year award for 2022, adding another feather to his cap.
The award was presented to the Minister at the 7th Anniversary Lecture/Niger Delta Awards 2022, which was held in Abuja on Tuesday, August 30, 2022, as part of the festivities for the Gbaramatu Voice Media 7th Anniversary Lecture.
The Minister who was the keynote speaker at the occasion was represented by Engr. Busari Kamoru Oladimeji, FNSE, Director of the Office of the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
In his presentation at the ceremony, which was read by Engr. Busari, Sylva stated that the Ministry of Petroleum Resources had established Machineries with the enactment of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 and placed a high value on the host communities as generators of our shared wealth.
“Nigeria’s PIA 2021 has a chapter dedicated to the development of host communities, which creates a framework to support its development, fostering sustainable prosperity and provision of direct social and economic benefits to the host communities from petroleum operations, and seeks to enhance harmonious coexistence between the host communities and the operating companies,” stated the Minister.
Sylva reaffirmed that the PIA requires oil and gas company operators to allocate a portion of their overall expenditures to the improvement of their individual host towns. As a result, the bill established a “Host Communities Development Trust Fund” (the “Trust”) to ensure that sufficient funds are available to implement sustainable development initiatives in the host communities. He emphasized that failure to incorporate the Trust could be grounds for revoking the relevant license or lease.
Engr. Busari Kamoru, Director Overseeing the Office of the Permanent Secretary, delivers the keynote address of the Honorable Minister of State for Petroleum Resources.
The Minister told Gbaramatu Voice that he held the organization in high regard for their contributions in promoting the culture and unity of the Ijaw people and for their efforts to become the Ijaws’ voice and a significant portion of the nation.
Jacob Abai, publisher and chief executive officer of Gbaramatu Voice, remarked in his welcome address that the celebration was an opportunity to demonstrate our commitment to the community. In the past seven years, he continued, the organization has met a number of obstacles, but it has stayed committed to the morals and principles that are the hallmark of the media.
Engr. Udeng Eradiri, Managing Director of Radnitz Integrated Services, Interim Administrator of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Dr. Efiong Akwa, Chairman/Managing Director of Chevron Nigeria Limited, Richard Kennedy, among others, were also present at the ceremony.
The topic of the 7th Anniversary Gbaramatu Voice Media Lecture is “Oil Politics, Securing National Assets, Dependence and Diversification.”
Signed,
Mrs. Enefaa Bob-Manuel is the Director of Information at MPR.