General
NCDMB, FI to Launch Portfolio Companies to Support Energy Startups
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), in partnership with Founder Institute (FI), is set to launch 17 new portfolio companies that have passed through the board’s Technology Incubation and Innovation Centre (TIIC).
This move is part of its mandate to catalyze research and development and support energy startups.
The launch of the companies will hold on Thursday, August 24, 2023, at the Nigerian Content Tower, Oxbow Lake Road, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State. It will have in attendance international and local venture capitalists, investors, and product development subject matter experts who might be interested in investing or partnering with the new portfolio companies.
In a statement, the board said key highlights of the event will be the pitching by the founders of their business ideas, with the hope of eliciting the interest of investors.
“The launch of the new portfolio companies is a major milestone of the board’s R&D strategy anchored on the commercialization of research and innovation.
“The exposure given to the Founders is anchored on a well-tested NCDMB product development framework, which includes product validation, prototype development, field trial, business development, and product deployment.
“The mission of both NCDMB and FI is to empower Nigerian startups and entrepreneurs to innovate and scale up their minimum viable products,” the statement said.
Speaking on the initiative, the Executive Secretary NCDMB, Mr Simbi Wabote, explained that the board deploys an end-to-end strategy in its projects and does not relent until ideas that it supports are fully deployed, commercialised and begin to solve societal problems.
He noted that some of the solutions proposed by the founders will impact key sectors of the economy beyond the oil and gas sector.
“These are innovative solutions to everyday problems that we face in the country. Nigerian youths are innovative and creative. They are looking for a platform they can get, and NCDMB will be that platform,” he added.
Speaking ahead of the launch, the Director of Planning, Research and Development at NCDMB, Mr Abdulmalik Halilu, explained that Founder Institute was engaged by the agency in December 2022 as a partner in product development. The programme started with 54 incubates.
He further hinted that the collaboration leveraged the institute’s globally recognized accelerator programme that saw the 54 incubates transiting from idea to business development.
He noted that as part of the programme, the founders underwent mentoring, concept development, and patenting processes, and some of them are currently developing prototypes of their various innovations.
At the end of the seven months of intense tutelage, 17 of the incubates completed the business case development phase and are now positioned to establish startup companies and attract investors.
He stated that the incubation process will continue after the launch and will include validation, a startup process, and assuring that the Board will handhold the companies until their minimum viable products are introduced in the market and become successful.
The 17 incubates represent a spectrum of fields in the energy sector and data management, including renewable energy, geological and geophysical, local materials substitution, health, safety, & environmental, and engineering. Other areas are technology development, pipeline monitoring systems, and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
The structured accelerator and the NCDMB incubation programmes have guided incubates to master the art of pitching, understanding market dynamics and customer insights, practical, and mentorship. The accelerator programme also equipped participants to navigate the entrepreneurial landscape effectively.
The impending showcase of the 17 incubates bears immense significance for Nigeria’s economic trajectory.
“By nurturing these talents, NCDMB is not only fostering job creation but also cultivating a pool of capable individuals poised to drive growth across various industries. The programme also ignites an entrepreneurial and innovative culture, with the potential to propel technological innovation and effect positive social change.”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The United States government gave some terrorists in Nigeria a Christmas gift that sent many of them to the great beyond.
On Thursday, December 25, 2025, the United States President, Mr Donald Trump, directed his country’s military to launch air strikes on camps of members of the dreaded Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in Sokoto State.
According to Mr Trump, the military action, which he threatened to carry out a few weeks ago if the Nigerian government does not stop the killing of Christians in the country, occurred on Thursday night.
“Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria, who have been targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians, at levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries!
“I have previously warned these Terrorists that if they did not stop the slaughtering of Christians, there would be hell to pay, and tonight, there was.
“The Department of War executed numerous perfect strikes, as only the United States is capable of doing.
“Under my leadership, our country will not allow radical islamic terrorism to prosper. May God bless our military, and Merry Christmas to all, including the dead terrorists, of which there will be many more if their slaughter of Christians continues,” Mr Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
In a video on X, formerly known as Twitter, the Department of War of the United States posted the below video of the air strikes;
https://twitter.com/DeptofWar/status/2004351717131903272
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The presidency has reacted to speculations that Mr Femi Gbajabiamila has been removed as the Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu.
It was alleged that Mr Gbajabiamila has been replaced with the President’s Principal Private Secretary, Mr Hakeem Muri-Okunola.
Mr Muri-Okunola went to Abuja to take up this role after leaving as the Head of Service of the Lagos State Civil Service.
Reacting to the reports on social media on the purported removal of Mr Gbajabiamila, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, the presidency said no such change has been made.
In a statement signed on Thursday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, members of the public were advised to disregard the report as “there is absolutely no truth to this story.”
“The Chief of Staff remains in his position. The Principal Private Secretary likewise remains in his role. Hakeem Muri-Okunola has not replaced Femi Gbajabiamila as Chief of Staff.
“The viral claim is a fabrication by mischievous purveyors of fake news whose sole aim is to create disharmony within the government.
“We reiterate that news media should always verify their information before publishing or sharing on social media,” the statement said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The new chief executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, has assumed office with a clear message to advance the country’s upstream oil and gas sector in line with the mandate of the commission as enshrined in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.
According to a statement signed by Mr Eniola Akinkuotu, the Head of Media & Strategic Communications at the upstream regulator, the NUPRC boss made this assertation during her first town hall meeting with management and staff on Tuesday December 23, 2025.
She further disclosed plans to make the commission a business enabler and re-ignite investments in the upstream sector.
Recall that President Tinubu nominated Mrs Eyesan to take over the NUPRC after the abrupt resignation of her predecessor, Mr Gbenga Komolafe as well as his counterpart in the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Mr Farouk Ahmed.
In her new capacity, Mrs Eyesan also set a firm production ambition of growing Nigeria’s output and increasing gas production.
“The goal is that we must enable the industry, we are regulators. We must enable the industry from our interactions with the stakeholders, from our interactions with everybody.
“My main objective is to ensure that we make a difference. I believe the NUPRC is at the Center of the industry,” she said.
The commission boss who has served for over three decades in the oil and gas sector, promised to entrench digitisation, transparency and efficiency in operations.
The NUPRC head said with the support of staff and management, the NUPRC will become the gold-standard regulator in Africa. She also promised capacity development, stronger technical depth and sustained engagement with stakeholders, unions and professional teams.
On leadership style, Mrs Eyesan promised an open-door policy and frequent staff engagement, while also soliciting for support and cooperation as the industry embarks on the next phase of transformation.
“If we work together we can unleash opportunities, I don’t see impediments only opportunities,” she added.
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