MOSIEND Backs NDDC’s Push To Decentralize Development Plan
The leadership of Movement for the Survival of the Ijaw Ethnic Nationality in the Niger Delta (MOSIEND), at the weekend has given its total support for the localization of the Niger Delta Regional Development Master Plan (NDRDMP) across zonal structures.
The group while welcoming efforts by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to decentralize its long-stalled regional development plan, described the move as a potential step toward more inclusive and accountable governance.
MOSIEND, stated that such moves could help align federal projects with the needs of local communities.
Amb. Winston C. Amain, MOSIEND’s National Secretary, said in a statement, that the new framework was “timely and strategic,” adding that it reflects “a renewed focus on participatory and sustainable development”
The comments followed an NDDC-led stakeholders’ workshop in Port Harcourt involving policymakers, civil society groups, and academics from Rivers, Abia, and Bayelsa States.
The event focused on improving policy design and development planning in the region, which remains plagued by pollution, unemployment, and underinvestment despite decades of oil production.
MOSIEND noted that an earlier version of the Master Plan, launched nearly twenty years ago, faltered due to limited community input and weak implementation. The group said decentralizing planning could correct those shortcomings—provided the process remains transparent.
“Localisation must go beyond administrative restructuring,” MOSIEND said.
“It should bring real decentralisation of planning, funding, and decision-making. Communities that have endured years of neglect deserve results that restore livelihoods and dignity.”
The organization urged the NDDC to define development zones around local cultural and geographic identities, set measurable targets for job creation and environmental restoration, and publish detailed project lists and budgets to enhance public oversight.
MOSIEND also called for independent monitoring committees and a remediation fund for communities affected by decades of oil spills and environmental degradation.
The group said it was open to collaborating with the NDDC and other regional stakeholders to ensure the localisation process delivers “tangible, people-centered outcomes”
