Host Communities Vow to Protect 3% Oil Fund

Host communities in the oil-rich Niger Delta have assured President Bola Tinubu of their readiness to manage the three per cent Host Community Development Fund with transparency and accountability, pledging that the resources will be used strictly for the benefit of oil-producing areas in line with the Petroleum Industry Act.

In a statement issued by the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Community Development Committees of Niger Delta Oil and Gas Producing Areas, Joseph Ambakederimo, the group expressed appreciation for the president’s commitment to the development of host communities and urged him to maintain that trust.

“We urge and appeal to President Bola Tinubu to continue to keep faith with the people of the oil-producing communities as he has consistently done,” the group said.

It urged the president not to listen or harken to the move by any actors within the Niger Delta states to hijack the management of the 3 per cent host communities development funds meant to uplift oil-producing communities in terms of providing infrastructure and human capital development for the first time since the discovery of oil.

The CDC said it has put in place mechanisms to ensure that the funds are properly managed in line with the objectives of the law.

“The CDC in conjunction with the HostCom has put in motion a foolproof mechanism to resolve all of the litigations that have arisen from the constitution of management teams of the funds for each management team by way of using an alternative dispute resolution mechanism,” it stated.

According to Ambakederimo, the HostCom Development Trust Fund committees “have made appreciable progress by way of concluding each community development plan, which entails needs assessment for each community, which are ready for consummation.”

According to him, the CDC, in collaboration with the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, has established a transparent framework to ensure proper monitoring and utilisation of the funds.

“This time, the CDC is working in collaboration with the EFCC and NUPRC to track disbursement of funds and payment for contracts to ensure the funds are judiciously applied to contractual obligations only,” the statement read.

Ambakederimo assured that all challenges delaying project take-off were being addressed.

“We assure the President that all encumbrances militating against the smooth take-off of development projects have been sorted out amicably, and there is no need for any interference from either local government or the state governments as proposed by the Bayelsa State Government,” he stated.

He urged members of the host communities to take ownership of their development process, urging them to protect and take charge of the infrastructural development of their communities rather than collude with negative forces to undermine community progress.

Ambakederimo further appealed to Tinubu not to “follow the whims” of some governors, warning against any move to transfer control of the 3 per cent fund away from the host communities.

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission has disclosed that the Host Community Development Trust fund has risen to N373bn as of October 13, 2025, with 536 community development projects currently ongoing across oil-producing areas in the country.

A statement signed by the Commission’s Head of Media and Strategic Communications, Eniola Akinkuotu, on Monday, said the fund comprises N125bn and $168.9m, contributed by oil companies operating under the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021.

The HCDT, established under Section 235 of the Petroleum Industry Act, mandates oil companies, known as “settlors”, to allocate 3 per cent of their annual operating expenditure from the preceding financial year into a trust fund dedicated to the development of their host communities.

According to the PIA, each settlor must, in consultation with host communities, appoint a Board of Trustees to oversee the management of the trust, which must be registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission.

The funds, which are lodged in banks with at least a BBB credit rating, are used to finance projects in infrastructure, education, healthcare, and environmental protection, among others.

The commission explained that while it does not have direct access to the funds, it ensures transparency and compliance through a digital monitoring system known as HostComply, which tracks project execution and disbursement in real time.