NCDMB begins year with platinum level ranking

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) said it emerged “Platinum Level 5 organizations” in the Bureau of Public Service Reform’s (BPSR) Self Assessment Tool (SAT) summary report released in Yenagoa on Wednesday.

According to the Federal Government Bureau, the rating translates as “Outstanding Performance with a performance rate of 90.5%.

In September 2022, the Council was considered the best among Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) in the performance ranking of the Executive Order (EO1) for Ease of Doing Business for January to June 2022. PEBEC), NCDMB Executive Secretary, Engr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote, was awarded the “Distinguished Capacity Development Award” by President Muhammadu Buhari in October.

BPSR, at the presentation ceremony at the NCDMB Conference in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State noted that the NCDMB has been structured to achieve its vision, mission and strategic objectives, which have been effectively communicated to relevant stakeholders and well understood by staff.

Continuing what it called “a validated evaluation and in-depth analysis of the agency’s processes and practices,” the Bureau reported that “NCDMB has implemented financial and accounting policies that comply with financial regulations and are clearly reviewed to ensure efficient and reliable financial reporting, such as e-payment for all transactions – supplies, contracts, salaries and staff entitlements.

In the ‘Main Areas of Weakness’ of the Council, the Bureau said, among other things, “The Governing Council has not ensured the establishment of an anti-corruption policy with a whistle-blower mechanism for NCDMB,” and “The organization’s strategic plan does not include the generation of additional financial resources with a mechanism to ensure management transparency and reporting on the performance of these resources.

To emphasize the belief that NCDMB will strive for higher performance beyond the Platinum Level 5 rating, the Bureau recommends that the Board “Develop a formal code of conduct that defines the standards of behavior that members of the NCDMB Board of Directors subscribe to and adhere to.” Also, “Procurement staff are encouraged to sign an affidavit of commitment not to engage in conflict of interest practices to enhance compliance with the provisions of the 2007 PPA. [Public Procurement Act, 2007.”

Presenting the report, the Director General, BPSR, Dasuki Arabi, hinted that NCDMB is the first agency under the Ministry of Petroleum Resources that submitted itself willingly to undergo the assessment since the Bureau was mandated to deploy the tool in all federal ministries, departments and agencies.
Represented by the Head, Strategy, Innovation and Research, BPSR, Mercy Okon, the Director General confirmed that the assessment was free from any influences and recommended the Board work with the Bureau to deepen reforms.

In his closing remarks on behalf of NCDMB Management, Director of Monitoring and Evaluation, Akintunde Adelana, thanked the BPSR, particularly its Director General for the painstaking assessment exercise and assured that the exceptional grade achieved by NCDMB would spur its staff to even do better. Noting that “Getting a Platinum Level award is no mean feat,” he promised that recommendations made by the BPSR would be carefully studied and implemented for even greater results.