Corporate players in the Nigerian Oil and Gas sector have been advised to cultivate and imbibe sound organizational integrity as a business culture if they are to access capital assistance from banks.
Speaking on the topic, “Access to Capital for Indigenous Oil & Gas Industry Growth: Current Challenges and Recommendations,” at this year’s Nigerian Oil & Gas (NOG) Week in Abuja, Mr. Samuel Egube, Director, Corporate Banking, Diamond Bank Plc, emphasized that organizational integrity is a key deciding factor for banks in deciding businesses to support.
Egube, who was the keynote speaker at the Oil & Gas Finance Seminar, hosted by Diamond Bank Plc, said, “Organizational integrity, which is enhanced by strong corporate governance, stable and reliable business processes and diverse ownership structure, is a key factor that needs to be deliberately developed among sector players as it does not happen by chance. Sometimes, people think they are good and wonder why the banks are not helping them. Banks are not just looking for good people; they are looking for corporations with good business practices that assure predictability.”
He further counseled sector practitioners to pay more attention to how they develop their business structures and processes, including building capacity in their organizations and complying with regulatory and statutory requirements.
Explaining the rationale for sponsoring the Oil & Gas Finance Seminar, Mrs. Ayona Trimnell, Head, Corporate Communications, Diamond Bank PLC, said the forum was in line with the bank’s interest in supporting the Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprise (SMEs) sector of the economy and guiding them on how to access capital for their businesses.
She said, “In line with Diamond Bank’s immense interest in equipping MSMEs for better performance, we decided to take advantage of the NOG Week, which brings Oil & Gas practitioners together, to enlighten small business owners within the sector on how to access capital for their businesses.”
Other speakers at the event included Dr. Tunde Afolabi, President, Nigerian Association of Indigenous Petroleum Explorers and Producers (NAIPEP), who also chaired the occasion; Dr. Bright Okogu, Director-General, Budget Office of the Federation; Azubuike Okezie, Managing Director, Geomarine Systems Ltd, and Paul Eluhaiwe, Director, Development Finance Department of the Central Bank of Nigeria.