Nigerian President Bola Tinubu abolished the Ministry of Niger Delta, all the work and functions previously assigned to the ministry will be transferred to the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), local media reported.
The decision was taken due to the overlapping functions of the two bodies, according to the outlet.
In May, Nigerian Senator Orji Uzor Kalu suggested scrapping the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs.
"Some of the ministries and parastatals that are no longer viable like the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs and some other ministries that are not viable should be scrapped. We have the Niger Delta Development Commission, like we have the North East Development Commission. So the Ministry of Niger Delta should be scrapped," he was quoted by the media as saying.
In addition, the names of a number of existing ministries have been changed, including the Ministry of Environment and Ecological Management, the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development, and the Ministry of Gas Resources.
The Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy was renamed as the Ministry Of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy. The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development is now the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation and will be headed by Nigerian politician and national women leader of the ruling All Progressive Congress party, Betta Edu.
The Ministry of Youth and Sports Development was split into two — the Ministry of Youth and the Ministry of Sports Development.
Since taking office on May 29, Tinubu has launched a series of reforms aimed at revitalizing the Nigerian economy. One of his initiatives was abolishing the fuel subsidy, which cost the government billions of dollars to keep consumer prices on petrol artificially low. This measure pushed up the cost of living, which triggered protests across the country.
Among the reforms, there were also the replacement of the governor of the central bank, the easing of foreign exchange controls and the launch of a transformation of the country's energy industry.