Nigeria’s technical workforce gap in the oil and gas sector is set to get renewed attention after the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) inaugurated a high-level committee to guide the full rollout of its Centre for Skills Development and Training (CSDT) in Port Harcourt.
Executive Secretary, PTDF, Professor Shuaibu Aliyu inaugurated the Committee on Operational Policy Review, Curriculum Development and Industry Integration at a ceremony in Abuja, charging members with reviewing the Centre’s systems, identifying operational gaps, and recommending how the facility can be put to optimal use.
Aliyu said the CSDT was created after a PTDF skills audit uncovered serious shortages of qualified Nigerian technicians, artisans, and craftsmen, especially in technical and middle-level roles across the oil and gas industry.
The Centre offers competency-based vocational training and internationally recognized certification in areas such as welding and fabrication, electrical work, industrial safety, automobile maintenance, and heavy-duty equipment maintenance.
The facility is about 98 percent complete, with an administrative building, auditorium, library, hostels, staff quarters, canteen, and power and water infrastructure already in place.
While awaiting full commencement, it has already hosted activities under PTDF’s Overseas and In-Country Scholarship Schemes, along with training programs run by bodies like the Bureau of Public Procurement.
The committee’s mandate includes developing an operational policy and management framework, designing industry-aligned curricula, setting up training and certification systems, creating pathways to internships and employment, building partnerships with regulators and industry players, and drafting an implementation plan with clear timelines and monitoring indicators.
Committee chairman Professor Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu thanked PTDF for the appointment and pledged a thorough review aimed at fully operationalizing the Centre.
He described skills development as central to economic growth, local content in the energy sector, and Africa’s role in the global energy transition.
The committee draws members from across Nigeria’s energy and education landscape, including OGTAN chairman Christopher Osarunwense, NBTE representative Dr. Folorunsho Akande, Green Energy International CEO Professor Anthony Adegbulugbe, TUC president Festus Osifo, academics from Ahmadu Bello University, the Federal University of Technology Akure, and Kaduna Polytechnic, regulatory representatives from NMDPRA and NUPRC, and delegates from Dangote Refinery and the Independent Petroleum Producers Group.
PTDF said it expects the committee’s expertise to sharpen the Centre’s programs, deepen ties with industry, and advance the agency’s broader mission of building capacity for Nigeria’s energy sector.
