Communities in the Niger Delta have been urged to take full ownership and actively protect multi-billion-naira projects executed by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and other government agencies, as alienation and vandalism continue to threaten infrastructure sustainability.
This call dominated discussions at a one-day capacity-building workshop organised by the NDDC’s Corporate Affairs Directorate in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, aimed at sensitising local stakeholders on safeguarding critical interventions sited in their domains.
Representing the Director of the Bayelsa State office of the NDDC, Engineer Godknows Alamieyeseigha, Project Manager in the Project Monitoring Department, Engineer Victor Oputa, explained that the programme sought to educate residents on the need to guard infrastructure in their localities against destruction.
He said many communities have long viewed NDDC projects as “external impositions” rather than shared community assets, leading to neglect, sabotage, and abandonment of facilities meant to drive regional development.
Lead consultant and Director of Peace and Development Project, Mr Francis Abayomi, described the engagement as a vital platform for brainstorming practical ways to protect projects through collective responsibility.
Resource person Mr Sunny Okereke stressed the importance of a bottom-up approach in project conception, planning, and execution. He advocated strong partnerships among communities, interventionist agencies like the NDDC, and government to guarantee long-term sustainability of infrastructure.
The workshop drew participants including Chairmen of Community Development Committees, youth and women leaders, as well as the Principal Manager, Community and Rural Development, Mr Moses Ebiegberi Alagoa.
Several attendees pledged to cascade the message back to their communities, committing to promote protection and maintenance of NDDC projects in their areas.
The event focused on effective community engagement models to ensure NDDC interventions across the nine Niger Delta states endure and deliver lasting benefits to host populations.
