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• October 11, 2025
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Imbibe Ethics, Innovation, Accountability for Effective Service Delivery, NDDC, Experts Charge Staff

Imbibe Ethics, Innovation, Accountability for Effective Service Delivery, NDDC, Experts Charge Staff

Sunday Okobi

Staff members of the Corporate Service/Governance and Due Process Department of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) have been charged to embrace accountability, innovation, integrity, and regulatory compliance to enable the commission to carry out its mandate in the Niger Delta region effectively.

The call was made at a three-day capacity-building retreat and masterclass for the Office of the Executive Director, Corporate Services, and the Corporate Governance and Due Process department of the Commission. The retreat was facilitated by Peace and Development Projects (PEDEP) and MARG Education International.

At the event, held in Lagos yesterday with the theme: ‘Regulatory and Compliance Trends, Ethics and Risk in Public Service: Innovating Corporate Services for Impact’, the Executive Director, Corporate Services, NDDC, Hon. Ifedayo Sunday Abegunde, in his address, stated that the theme reflects a necessary shift in thinking, adding that: “Our goal is not just to respond to change, but to lead it, and that the commitment of dedicated professionals to public service will continue to drive the Niger Delta Development Commission forward.”

Abegunde further explained that the retreat was curated to sustain human capital development within the Commission.

According to him, “It is a space for strategic reflection, collaborative thinking, and innovative planning to enable us to better align corporate services with the Commission’s mandate.

“The theme for this year’s retreat reflects a timely and necessary shift in our thinking. The fast-evolving nature of governance, technology, and public expectations demands a more agile, integrated, and forward-thinking corporate service structure.

“This retreat has been curated as part of our wider effort to sustain the development of human capital across the Commission, starting from within. It is a space for strategic reflection, collaborative thinking, and innovative planning to enable us to better align corporate services with the Commission’s mandate and the needs of our region.”

He noted that the programme aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the President Bola Tinubu’s government, focusing on enhancing organisational effectiveness through innovation, embedding a performance-driven culture, and promoting efficiency and transparency.

The executive director told the staff members that their duties are to “streamline our internal processes to promote efficiency and transparency, and foster an environment where creativity and accountability coexist. As participants, the expectations from this retreat are clear: Openly engage and share practical ideas that can improve how we work; identify specific gaps and propose implementable reforms, and commit to translating retreat insights into daily operations for tangible results.”

While declaring the 2025 Corporate Services retreat and masterclass open, he encouraged the personnel of the department to connect, reflect, and challenge the norm, adding that: “By the end of this gathering, I expect your intellectual batteries to be recharged and fully equipped for more productive service delivery to the Niger Delta and beyond.

One of the resource persons for he retreat, Seyi Olulade, managing partner of The Impeccable Skills Company, in her presentation titled: ‘Innovating Corporate Services for Impact: Building A Regenerative Legacy’, urged the personnel to lead differently, work differently, and care differently, adding that: “that is how institutions transcend generations. Excellence is not a destination; it is the discipline of constant renewal.”

According to her, “The future of governance will not be led by those who know the rules best, but by those who know how to renew them. Our work is not to repeat what was, but to reimagine what can be-that is how legacy is built.”

Olulade challenged the NDDC to recalibrate its strategies for the next 25 years.

Another speaker, Dr. Abiodun Ashad of the Department of Public Administration, Lagos State University, who dwelt on ‘Ethics and the need for regulatory compliance for effective public service’, highlighted ethics as crucial for effective service delivery.

He identified accountability, transparency, and professionalism as key pillars that build public trust, support sustainable development, and strengthen democracy. Dr. Ashad said: “The future of Nigeria’s public service will not be defined by the brilliance of our policies alone, but by the character of those who implement them. “Ethics and leadership are not abstract ideals; they are daily choices we make in how we serve, decide, and lead. Every time a public servant chooses integrity over corruption, accountability over impunity, and service over self-interest, the nation takes a step forward.

“Let us leave this workshop with a renewed commitment: to lead by example, to act with courage, and to rebuild trust in our institutions. The change Nigeria needs begins with us-here and now.”

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Sunday Okobi Staff members of the Corporate Service/Governance and Due Process Department of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) have been charged to embrace accountability, innovation, integrity, and regulatory compliance

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NGO Advises FG to Use Carbon Credits to Fund Renewable Energy 

NGO Advises FG to Use Carbon Credits to Fund Renewable Energy 

Michael Olugbode in Abuja

A Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Vectar Energy, has said carbon credits could be the solution to the funding of the nation’s renewable energy plan, 

Nigeria is in urgent need of about $40 billion to meet its energy gap, this Vector Energy advised the federal government to tap into carbon credits to fund renewable energy as a solution to the perennial power problem in the country.

Nigeria officially launched its Carbon Market Activation Plan (CMAP) in February 2024 and a supporting policy, the Nigeria Carbon Market Activation Policy (NCMAP), in September 2024, which outlines the strategy to unlock an estimated $2.5 billion market by 2030. 

The plan is supported by an inter-governmental committee inaugurated by Vice President Kashim Shettima and aims to accelerate green growth, standardise its carbon market ecosystem, and facilitate international trading under the Paris Agreement

The Founder of Vectar Energy, Deborah Fadeyi, told journalists in Abuja at the maiden EcoWise multi-stakeholder forum under the theme: ‘Trust, Scale, Impact: Unlocking climate finance through carbon credits for Solar in Nigeria’, that there is an essential need for sustainable solutions through converting solar data into real capital via accelerating climate finance and clean energy in Nigeria .

She said, “access to electricity had become a burden, particularly with not less than 8.6 million Nigerians unable to access electricity, amidst power supply.

Fadeyi noted that: “When we go to COP events, we pretty much ask for aid to be able to build climate resilience, which is one key thing for us as a country.

“Having to build climate resilience through access to electricity, not just for day-to-day, but for sustainable industrialisation, then we realise that aids don’t work.

“The conversation of aids doesn’t work. So how about we trade something? This is where carbon credits come in. If we strive to deploy low-carbon renewable projects, is there a way for us to get concessions from that?

“To be able to finance more renewable energy projects, more solar projects, there is a mechanism for that, it is called the Clean Development Mechanisms.”

She explained further, “such mechanisms could bolster Nigeria’s ability to convert solar data or any sort of low-carbon or renewable green energy data into carbon credits. 

 “Also that carbon credit is sold to corporate buyers such as Amazon, Microsoft, to be able to showcase their net zero confidence as the world progresses to net zero by 2050.”

Speaking at the occasion, the Ambassador of Israel to Nigeria, Michael Freeman, represented by Thelma Agada, the B-Technology Project Manager, commended Vectar Energy to be the result of the partnership between Nigeria and Israel through the establishment of the Innovate Hub.

The envoy said Nigeria has everything it takes to lead Africa’s clean energy transformation through vast sunlight, abundant natural resources and most importantly, a young, talented, determined population.

 “The challenge and the opportunity lies in connecting innovation to implementation and ideas to investment. This forum is exactly the kind of platform that makes such connections possible.

“This brings together government, private sector, academia and development partners, the four pillars that most work hand-in-hand if we can and will achieve the lasting impact.”

Freeman said, “Let me also assure you that Israel stands ready to partner with you on this journey, whether it is through technology transfer, capacity building or joint ventures in renewable energy infrastructure.”

On her part, the Vice President, Renewable Energy Association of Nigeria, Damilola Asaleye, commended the launch of the EcoWise platform by Vectar Energy, to be innovative platform that is needed currently in Nigeria and Africa at large.

She described EcoWise as a platform that is locally built by a Nigerian to bolster sustainable solutions in the renewable energy sector and to enable Africans to have access to climate finance.

She said, “We can have access to environmental finance and then, we can turn all the data from our solar installations right now in Nigeria, we can turn this into revenue through the climate credits.

“I am glad that a private sector organisation is actually taking the bull by the horn to implement this climate finance platform right now, whereby we can convert climate, environmental data into revenue. 

“We do not have to wait for the government for everything to be done. We private sector owners too need to step up to the game and ensure that we have data credibility,” Asaleye said. 

Highpoint of the event was EcoWise technical paper launch, virtual presentations on: Nigeria’s solar ambition, empowering people for climate resilient energy access and financing the solar transition. 

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Michael Olugbode in Abuja A Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Vectar Energy, has said carbon credits could be the solution to the funding of the nation’s renewable energy plan,  Nigeria is in urgent need