Yenagoa — Deputy Speaker of Bayelsa State House of Assembly, Mr. Fini Angaye, has lauded the state government for siting the Local Content Capacity Development Institute at Sabageria in Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area of the state, saying it would help improve indigenous participation in the oil and gas industry.

Mr. Angaye, who expressed worry that more than 70 per cent of the jobs in the oil and gas sector were still being carried out by foreigners, noted with regret that the practice was contrary to the Nigerian Local Content Act.

The Local Content Capacity Development Institute in the state, he said, would help boost the local capacity of the youths to enable them participate efficiently in the petroleum industry.

According to the Deputy Speaker, the Nigerian Content Policy is aimed at promoting value addition to the local economy, increase local participation, build local capacity on the back of ongoing projects and generally increase linkage to other sectors of the national economy to grow local content by 70 per cent.

While commending President Goodluck Jonathan for his proactive steps to strengthen the nation’s economy, the lawmaker, representing Kolokuma/Opokuma constituency I, expressed hope that the new law will provide domestic job growth for Nigeria’s citizens, who have seen little tangible benefit since oil was first discovered in commercial quantity in 1956 at Oloibiri.
Aside the issue of job creation, he said  “the local content capacity development institute in the state has far reaching implications for technological advancement, long term cost effectiveness, post amnesty programme in the Niger Delta and the improved impact of oil and gas industry on Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product.”

It will be recalled that the Local Content Act provides for the creation of a special fund, which one percent of every contract awarded in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector shall be paid for the purpose of building capacity and capability in the sector.