By Comfort Olayinka
Nigerian Senate Wednesday, June 18, 2025 screened, Rt. Hon. Chibudom Nwuche (Rivers State as Chairman) and Usoro Offiong Akpabio (Akwa Ibom State as Managing Director) of the South South Development Commission (SSDC).
Also screened were the Executive Directors of the Commission: Marcus Nie Eji in charge of Projects (Rivers); Aganaba Preye Steven – Social & Human Capital Development (Bayelsa); Dr. Timi Alari Ayibatonye – Corporate Services (Delta); Joseph Ugheoke – Commercial & Environmental Development (Edo) and Amb. Sony Abang – Finance (Cross River).
Other nominees are Larry Odey (Cross River); Charles Zuofa (Bayelsa); Dr. Nkereuwem Ebong (Akwa Ibom); Chika Chinedu (Rivers); Femi Oise (Edo); Dr. Charles Sylvester Enukhowhate (Delta); Tijani Yahaya Kaura (North-West); Tabitha Iliya Sallah (North-East); Alh. Yusuf Rasaq Amao (North-Central); Joseph Mmama (South-East), and Bukunola Braimoh (South-West).
However, Miss Akpabio who hails from Uruan Local Government Area was nominated in May 2025 for the plum job in the newly created Commission by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Usoro Akpabio is a seasoned energy and public sector professional with over 17 years of impactful experience spanning oil and gas trading, government relations, business development, and public-private sector collaborations. She most recently served as Group General Manager, Trading, Government and Client Relations at Century Energy Group, where she also held strategic oversight roles in a gas subsidiary and contributed significantly to stakeholder engagement, regulatory compliance, and cross-border energy negotiations.
She has acted as a Senior Strategic Consultant to a major refinery project in Nigeria, leading operational and legislative integration efforts that helped align production strategies with government policy frameworks and regional supply agreements. Her work has included coordinating high-level engagements with the National Assembly and advancing compliance with international product standards.
Usoro’s petroleum industry involvement includes oil field services, terminal and pipeline operations, as well as FPSO liaison roles, where she ensured safety, environmental compliance, and effective coordination between offshore and onshore teams.
Core Reporters report that the Chairman of the Senate committee on the SSDC, Senator Benson Kombowei urged nominees to execute developmental projects that would address the issue of economic sabotage, environmental degradation and infrastructure decay bedeviling the Niger Delta region
