Project: NCDMB e-Library Development

The NCDMB e-Library Development project concerns the proposed development of a modern library, e-Library, digital repository and associated physical and information infrastructure for the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).

The project is currently in an early project-definition and scope-development stage. Existing work includes concept development, project registers, preliminary scope information, cost information, assumptions, risks, resource information and schedule development. The current intention is to develop the project sufficiently for management consideration and inclusion in the 2027 budget cycle, after which specialist consultancy and implementation arrangements may be established.

The emerging scope is wider than an online library alone. It may include physical library and archival facilities, ICT and network infrastructure, a library management system and digital repository, digitisation and metadata management, cybersecurity and data protection, collections and content management, training, commissioning and post-launch support.

PHC Service is being introduced initially as governance support to Michael Oluseyi, who is providing project-development consultancy input to NCDMB. PHC does not act as architect, construction contractor, financier or specialist library designer. Its role is to provide a continuously maintained project-health governance structure through which project definition, deliverables, concerns, actions, evidence, decisions and interfaces can be made visible and progressively strengthened.

The immediate objective is to establish a credible, evidence-based project definition for the NCDMB e-Library that can support management decision-making, budget consideration, specialist engagement and subsequent implementation.

Specific objectives are to:

• Capture and organise the existing project definition, scope, assumptions, risks, resources, schedule and supporting evidence;
• Establish a clear set of project deliverables and responsibilities;
• Identify missing information, unresolved interfaces and matters requiring management decision;
• Develop and maintain the project's Concern and Action profile;
• Support preparation of a sufficiently mature brief and implementation basis for management review and the 2027 budget process;
• Provide a structured basis for engagement with specialist library, ICT, architectural, engineering, construction and other service providers;
• Assess Funding Readiness, Delivery Readiness and other relevant PHC Quality dimensions as project information matures;
• Improve the credibility, traceability and usefulness of the project-development work being provided to NCDMB;
• Establish an appropriate PHC Service level that can continue from early definition through later stages if required; and
• Provide a real working demonstration of continuously maintained PHC governance on a live Nigerian project.

The objective is not to predetermine who will design or construct the facility. PHC should help make the project sufficiently well defined that appropriate specialist appointments and investment decisions can subsequently be made on a credible basis.

The project has arisen through Michael's existing professional relationship with NCDMB. Michael has described having worked with NCDMB since 2023 on a contract basis, including project controls and PMO-related work, and currently working directly with a General Manager associated with the project. He has been helping with early concept-development material including concept notes, project execution planning and schedule development.

NCDMB already holds more extensive internal project information than has so far been shared with PHC, including project registers, scope information, cost information, risk and assumption registers and resource information. The work presently underway is intended to strengthen the project brief and supporting documentation in preparation for management consideration and potential inclusion in the 2027 budget.

The initial WBS supplied to PHC indicates a substantial multidisciplinary project covering governance and planning, physical construction, ICT and digital systems, collections and museum/archive content, training, launch and subsequent monitoring. All activities in that preliminary WBS were identified as not yet started, indicating that it should currently be treated as an initial structuring document rather than evidence of completed project definition or authorised execution.

Michael initially explored whether Order Efficiency and PHC could provide wider international technical or commercial credibility in support of winning the eventual consultancy. Subsequent discussion clarified that Order Efficiency is not a capital-backed construction or engineering organisation and should not be presented as such.

The proposition has therefore been reshaped: Michael remains the consultant servicing NCDMB, while PHC provides specialist project-health governance support to Michael's consultancy work.

This arrangement allows PHC to demonstrate its value on a real project without pretending to provide design, construction, finance or specialist technical capability that would properly be supplied by appropriately qualified organisations.

If developed successfully, the project could provide NCDMB with a structured physical and digital knowledge facility supporting access to technical, educational, regulatory, historical and local-content information. The eventual impact will depend on the final approved scope and should not yet be assumed.

At the current stage, the most immediate potential impact is improved quality of project definition and decision-making.

By introducing PHC during early development, project information can be progressively organised into a visible and maintainable governance structure. Deliverables, assumptions, risks, concerns, actions, evidence, responsibilities and decisions can be identified before major commitments are made.

This should make weaknesses visible earlier, improve the quality of information presented to NCDMB management, and provide a stronger basis for budget approval, consultant selection and subsequent implementation.

For Michael, the project provides an opportunity to strengthen the professional project-development service he is already providing to NCDMB by using PHC as continuing governance capacity rather than simply producing isolated documents.

For PHC, the project provides an important live demonstration of the service model: continuously maintained project-health governance, scaled by hours, with readiness assessments and reports generated from the resulting evidence base rather than treated as standalone products.

Longer-term impacts, including education, professional capacity development, digital access, preservation of knowledge, local employment, supplier participation and other local-content benefits, should be measured as the project definition matures rather than claimed in advance.