Newly formed NDCCITMA points to N5bn support to over 4000 small business

Over 4000 small businesses have received urgent help from a N5bn fund managed by the newly established Chamber of Commerce for the Niger Delta region.

The Niger Delta Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Trade, Mines, and Agriculture (NDCCITMA) said last week that it has made impact through the fund.

Idaere Gogo-Ogan, chairman of NDCCITMA, who spoke at pre-summit press briefing in Port Harcourt Monday, March 23, 2026, pointed to the setting up of the Niger Delta Science & Technology Park for tech innovation as another positive sign.

Gogo-Ogan said these were important signals that confidence can be rebuilt through structure, credibility, and delivery. “This summit is different. A Niger Delta Economic Compact will help align public and private sector commitments. Our aim is long term economic platform that continues to generate opportunities well beyond the closing session.”

He said: “Our ambition is bold, but it is achievable. We are working to catalyse up to $5bn in structured investment commitments over the next five years. If pursued with discipline, coordination, and speed, this pipeline can support more than 500,000 direct and indirect jobs and contribute meaningfully to a stronger regional economy.

“At the heart of the summit is a structured marketplace featuring a Deal Room of 30 to 50 prescreened, investment-ready projects across the sectors that matter most to the future of the Niger Delta. These are in agriculture, food security, manufacturing, industrial clusters, infrastructure, logistics, the blue economy, marine enterprise, tourism, creative economy, technology, digital innovation, gas commercialization, human capital development, and access to finance.”

Speaking earlier, Solomon Edebiri, secretary of NDCCITMA and chairman of the summit planning committee, said activities lined up for the Economic and Investment Summit include road shows in the nine member states, FCT and Lagos, structured webinar and a follow-up press conference.

He said the summit would be a gateway to investment, a platform for innovation, and a catalyst for industrial growth in the Niger Delta.

Different development experts have said the region has received huge financial windfalls without enough results.

They said between 1999-2025, approximately $205bn–$258bn flowed into the region through mechanisms such as the NDDC which received between $41bn-$51bn, Amnesty programme $3.4bn and others, from the 13% derivation, FAAC, etc.