?The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) have joined forces to expand women’s participation across Nigeria's oil and gas sector.

During a meeting at the NCDMB liaison office in Abuja on Thursday, UN Women Country Representative Ms. Beatrice Eyong and NCDMB General Manager of Corporate Communications Dr. Obinna Ezeobi discussed strategic joint initiatives.

A primary focus of the partnership is addressing the low uptake of the dedicated $40 million Women in Oil and Gas Fund—co-funded by NCDMB ($20 million) and the Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM Bank, $20 million) with a competitive 5% interest rate.

UN Women proposed conducting a targeted study to identify systemic barriers hindering women-owned and women-led businesses from accessing the facility, including documentation, registration, and tax compliance challenges.

Additional areas of collaboration include capacity building for NCDMB personnel to integrate gender perspectives into project planning and budgeting, vendor development programs, affirmative procurement strategies, and promoting young girls in STEM education.

Reaffirming NCDMB's commitment under Executive Secretary Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, Dr. Ezeobi highlighted existing Board frameworks such as the NCCF Diversity Sectoral Working Group and ongoing support for female energy associations, emphasizing that the board remains ready to collaborate with UN Women to remove structural barriers and drive inclusive economic growth.