The interim administrator of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Effiong Akwa, has said about 70 per cent of the people of oil-producing Niger Delta region are living below poverty line, despite 90 per cent of the nation’s revenue coming from the area.

Mr Akwa said his commission, meant for intervention project and programmes, has never received full budgetary allocation since inception.

The NDDC boss made this known on Wednesday at the University of Abuja when he delivered a lecture titled “The Role of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) in National Development.”

“We have a funding deficit. The NDDC as a commission has not received the full budgetary allocation since inception and funding remains a major challenge to date.

“It is a known fact that NDDC is owed excess of monies by specific fund providers and the current administration is making all efforts to ensure that this is addressed so that contractors can be paid,” he said.

The interim administrator noted that there was a need to maintain the peace in the area to achieve a robust economy in the country.

Meanwhile, he added that the forensic audit of the commission has forced some contractors to return to the site.

“The creation of NDDC was fundamental as a part of the strategy to move Nigeria forward. The body has assisted in addressing development matters in this country,” the vice-chancellor of the university, Abdul-Rasheed N’Allah, said.

The lecture was organised by the Department of History and Diplomatic Studies of the university.

According to the head of the department, Philip Afaha, the idea behind the lecture is to reposition the department of history and to deepen the democracy and development of the country.