President Muhammadu Buhari has inaugurated the board of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, calling on the members to ensure decency and transparency in the management of the nation’s oil industry.

Also inaugurated on Friday were the boards of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, NCDMB, as well as the Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority, NNRA.

The president also tasked the newly inaugurated boards to come up with workable strategies to effectively tackle the current challenges facing the oil and gas sector of the economy.

Among other things, the boards will be advising the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, as well as the management of the NNPC, on how the country can get maximum value from its oil and gas assets.

Kachikwu also doubles as the chairman of the boards.

During the brief inauguration ceremony at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, President Buhari reminded the members that crude oil remains Nigeria’s highest foreign exchange earner and as such, it was important for them to “ensure propriety in the management of these most vital national institutions.”

He said: “You should advise the Minister and the Corporations’ management on the most effective way for Nigeria to get value for money from our assets.

“My expectation from the members of the boards is for them to ensure that NNPC charts a way to face current economic challenges.

“This will involve a careful look at the ongoing reforms designed to steer the corporation to achieve better performance and efficiency,’’ he said.

The president also tasked the new NNPC board to come up with ideas on ways of dealing with the difficulties in funding Joint Venture projects between the corporation and international oil companies as well as other investment issues.

Buhari said that his administration has introduced transparency in the management of the country’s oil industry through the monthly publishing of operational and financial reports of the NNPC.

He said he was optimistic that given the members’ experience and knowledge, the expectations of Nigerians regarding the oil and gas industry would be met within a reasonable time frame.

Chairman of the inaugurated boards, Kachikwu assured the president that they would ensure transparency and accountability in discharging their responsibilities.

Other members of the NNPC Board include the Group Managing Director, Maikanti Baru; Buhari’s Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari; Tajuddeen Umar, Pius Akinyelure and Mahmoud Isa-Dutse.