Yakubu Lawal, General Manager, Communication and Public Relations, NDPHC
For his prolonged years of meritorious service, Yakubu Lawal, General Manager, Communication and Public Relations, of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited (NDPHC) has been honoured with a lifetime achievement award by the National Association of Energy Correspondents (NAEC).
The award, which was presented at NAEC’s recent annual conference and awards event, recognized Lawal as an award-winning journalist, oil industry analyst, administrator per excellence and technocrat.
Lawal had his primary and secondary school education at Kabba, Kogi state, before proceeding to the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, where he had BSc in Economics in 1988. He also holds an MBA from the Lagos State University, in 2005.
Lawal’s career spans media communication, journalism, public relations, event management stretching from 1990 till date. He has worked in both public and private sectors. He started his career with the Punch Newspaper as an Energy Desk Officer, preparing energy/power related reports as well as monitoring the implementation of power projects across the country. He has held the position of Head, Energy Desk. He furthered his career path in the energy and power communication sector by joining the Guardian Newspaper in 2000 as Energy Editor, a position he admirably worked for 9 years. He produced weekly energy pull out in the Guardian Newspaper focusing on the oil, gas and power sectors.
Lawal’s hard work and tenacity could not go unnoticed thereby leading to his appointment as the Special Assistant on Communication/Media to the Honourable Minister of Power, Dr. Lanre Babalola in 2009. He also served as Special Assistant on Communication Media to the Honourable Minister of State for Power, Architect Nuhu Somo Wya in 2010. With his wide experience and knowledge of the power sector, Lawal was appointed as Manager in NDPHC in 2010 and was promoted to the level of Assistant General Manager in 2011. In 2012 he rose to the position of Deputy General Manager Communication and Public Relations.
Lawal’s leadership and management skills saw him rise to the position of General Manager in 2014, a position he still currently holds.
As an energy analyst, he has participated in international conferences, such as Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, conference in Vienna, Austria in 1992; the Annual International Press Conference in Zurich, Switzerland in 2001; the International Conference and Exhibition of World Petroleum Congress, WPC, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil in 2002; the Producer Consumer Summit in Washington DC, USA in 2006; and the World Petroleum Congress, Madrid, Spain in 2008 among others.
Lawal has been actively involved in the National Association of Energy Correspondents, NAEC. He once held the position of Secretary of the association from 1997-1999 and became Chairman of the association from 1999-2001.
He has, to his credit, several publications such as Tariff Structure and the Development of the Industrial sector under Structural Adjustment Programme, SAP, June 1988, Road to Peace: Nigerian Amnesty brings ray of hope for lasting end to hostilities in Niger Delta (OPEC Bulletin of November 2009).
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