Centre Seeks Passage Of NEITI Amendment Act 2007

Centre for Transparency Advocacy (CTA) has said the non-reconstitution of the Board of NEITI and National Stakeholders Working Group (NSWG) of NEITI is a clog in the wheel of progress in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI).

It therefore tasked the National Assembly on the quick passage of the NEITI Amendment Act 2007 and listing NEITI Board as statutory to avoid its dissolution by any new government.

The group also called for the support of the legislative arm of government, which will include the presentation of NEITI reports as a priority in its agenda.

In a statement signed by its executive director, Faith Nwadishi, CTA urged the federal government to quickly reconstitute the National Stakeholders Working Group (NSWG) of NEITI, noting that the non-reconstitution of the board is a clog in the wheel of progress of EITI.

„Often, this has led to EITI marking Nigeria low in this aspect.  We call upon President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to help in sustaining this progress of the NEITI implementation in Nigeria by quickly reinstating the National Stakeholders Working Group (NSWG) of NEITI that was dissolved alongside other boards of MDAs in the country,“ Nwadishi said.

According to her, the peculiarity of the mandate of the NSWG justifies the call for its reinstatement, expressing hope that in Nigeria‘s oil and gas industry, this would signal the beginning of a new age marked by accountability and advancement.

The executive director said the CTA welcomes the news of Nigeria’s achievement in the recent final global assessment of the implementation of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI).

It would be recalled that in a release by the EITI global office, Nigeria achieved the highest possible score of 90 points for data integrity, report comprehensiveness, outcomes and impacts, economic growth contribution, and legal framework conformance.

Nwadishi said although this is a commendable achievement, NEITI, the civil society, relevant stakeholders and the Nigeria government still have a lot to do to achieve at least a 98 percent excellent mark in the next EITI process in 2026.