Regina Otokpa 
The Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in the oil, gas and mining sectors have joined forces and thrown their support behind the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) to promote transparency, good governance and accountability in the extractive sector.
Rising from an enlarged all-inclusive consultative forum convened by NEITI, the CSOs underlined the need for unity and commitment to reconciliation in order to ensure the effective discharge of their roles as important stakeholders in the NEITI/EITI process by building stronger partnerships in using NEITI reports to push for reforms under the NEITI/EITI principles of transparency and accountability.
A statement made available to newsmen by NEITI’s Deputy Director/Head Communications & Stakeholders Management, Mrs Obiageli Onuorah on Sunday in Abuja, noted that an all-inclusive seven-man Committee was set up at the meeting to harmonize existing frameworks & platforms of engagements into a comprehensive NEITI-CSO Constituency Guideline for the sector.
The statement partly reads: “The new guideline to be developed is to be modelled after the EITI Constituency guideline released at the Dakar Global Conference in June this year.
“The Civil Society Organisations commended NEITI Secretariat for initiating and facilitating the meeting and called for sustained regular engagements. CSO welcomed the Federal Government’s special support to NEITI Secretariat to secure a befitting permanent Office Accommodation and commended NEITI’s prompt utilisation of the opportunity.
CSOs urged the EITI globally to acknowledge the permanent office accomplishment by Nigeria for NEITI as a rare innovation worthy of emulation by other EITI-implementing countries.
“The meeting welcomed capacity programmes planned for CSO, especially on the 2023 EITI Standard & EITI implementation in Nigeria and look forward to its implementation.”
The Committee is Chaired by Tijah Bolton, Executive Director, Policy Alert and Mrs Juliet UkanNwosu, Executive Director, Extractive 360 as Secretary of the Committee.
Other members of the Committee include Mr Taiwo Otitolaye: Co-ordinator, Publish What You Pay Nigeria (PWYP).
Other members include: Mrs Faith Nwadishi: Executive Director, Centre for Transparency and Accountability (CTA), Dr Mina Ogbanga: Executive Director, Centre for Development Support Initiatives (CEDSI) and Mr. Bassey Udo, Chairman, Media Initiative for Transparency in Extractive Industries (MITEI).
