The Chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Governing Board, Mr Chiedu Ebie, has assured that the Commission will continue to play a strategic role in the development of legal education in universities across the Niger Delta region.
Ebie spoke during the 2026 Moot and Mock Trial Competition for law Faculties in universities in the region, held at the Dr Nabo Graham Douglas Port Harcourt Campus of the Nigerian Law School, Rivers State.
He said that the Commission would continue to play its statutory role in developing and supporting efforts to advance education, especially in legal education through practical training to improve capacity.
He stated: “We have been deliberate about our interventions in the educational and human capacity development of the people of this region. This is evidenced by the repositioning of our foreign and local Postgraduate Scholarship Programmes, and by the provision of infrastructure, roads, hostels, desks and other learning facilities, across many higher institutions in the Niger Delta.”
The NDDC Chairman stressed the importance of Moot Court and Mock Trial competitions in the academic curriculum for law students, and the strategic role they play in shaping and building the confidence of young legal minds.
“Moot Court competitions offer students a platform to hone their advocacy and courtroom presentation skills, and to learn firsthand lessons that will serve them well in their future careers. They offer students an opportunity to step outside the classroom and engage in practical courtroom work,” he said.
“It is our expectation that this competition lays the foundation for the advocacy skills these young legal minds will need to draw attention to the challenges of our region, even at this early stage of their careers.”
In his address, the NDDC Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, noted that the Commission was strengthening its partnerships and collaborations with the Judiciary, the Nigerian Bar Association, and, indeed, the wider legal community.
Ogbuku said: “We strongly believe that law, when deployed effectively and efficiently, can be a catalyst for rapid, sustainable development in our region.
He urged the students to look beyond the competition and reflect on how their fresh knowledge and insight could be harnessed toward the sustainable development of the Niger Delta region.
According to the NDDC boss, “We are at a critical stage in the global socio-economic matrix, a period of rapid energy transition from fossil fuels to clean energy. We are also at a technological stage where Artificial Intelligence (AI) is experiencing exponential growth. Therefore, our legal education curriculum in the region must adapt quickly and embrace these global shifts and trends to position and equip the region’s future leaders with the skill set to compete globally.”
In a keynote address, the Special Guest of Honour, a retired Justice of the Supreme Court, Hon. Justice Mary Odili, commended NDDC for sponsoring the Moot and Mock Trial competition for law students, stating that it was an essential component of legal training.
She shared her experiences with the students and advised them to make the most of the competition, as not everything was learnt in the classroom.
Also speaking, the 30th President of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Mr Olumide Akpata, noted that the NDDC understood the transformative powers of legal training.
He observed: “Advocacy is the bedrock of the legal profession. The ability to think on your feet is something AI can’t replicate.”
The Deputy Director-General and Head of the Port Harcourt Campus of the Nigerian Law School, Prof. Chinonso Mmuozoba, stated that human capacity building was a very important factor in the development of any region, adding that it was central to the development of critical thinking in all professions.
He affirmed that the NDDC was helping with legal education and training for lawyers. He also commended the interventions of NDDC in the educational sector generally. He advised the students to see the trial as more than competition.
In his welcome address, the NDDC Director of Legal Services, Mr Victor Arenyeka, declared that the Moot Court and Mock Trial competitions were key components of the training process for law students globally.
He explained: “Through the Moot Court Competition, we bring together law students from Universities across the region in a healthy contest, frame facts from legal issues peculiar to the socio-political environment of the region, where the students discuss topical matters in environmental law, oil and gas law, petroleum industry laws and sustainable development with a view to offering solutions from a legal standpoint.”
