Nigeria's minister for commerce and industry Josephine Yinoe Tapgun has insisted that the Industrial Training Force (ITF) has a crucial role to play in the country's economic and social development.

This Day reports that Ms Tapgun said that manpower training will be one of the surest ways to facilitate growth and returns from the oil and gas industry and other key sectors.

"Government is committed to the completion of the on-going independent power projects across the country, with its multiplier effects of employment generation, poverty alleviation and wealth creation," she added.

Newly-appointed president Goodluck Jonathan has pledged to transform Nigeria's oil and gas industry by increasing local participation in the sector.

A cornerstone of this policy is making oil and gas training more readily available to local workers, particularly those living in the oil and gas-rich Niger Delta region, while Nigerian companies will also be given priority access to new energy contracts.

Getenergy for Western Africa