Africa Network for Environmental and Economic Justice (ANEEJ) and Leadership Initiative for Transformation and Empowerment (LITE-Africa) have called on both the Federal and Niger Delta State Governments to re-focus the various development institutions for the desired change and development of the region.
Left to right: Leo Atakpu, ANEEJ deputy executive director, Tony Abolo (with Stetson) of DAND, David Ugolor, ANEEJ executive director, Jerry Nwigwe, of LITE-Africa and Senior Special Assistant to the Edo state governor on Civil Society matters
The call is coming several years after the establishment of Niger Delta Development Agencies, such as the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, EDSOGPADEC, DESOPADEC and OSOPADEC.
In a joint statement the organizations said the call was premised on their findings while implementing: Strengthening Advocacy and Civic Engagement (SACE) project which jointly assessed these Institutions to get a deeper understanding of their mandates, policies and the activities they are pursuing.
Both organizations headed by Rev. David Ugolor, Executive Director (ANEEJ) and Joel Bisina Executive Director of (LITE-Africa), respectively are implementing the SACE project in Edo, Delta, Ondo and Cross River States, with support from United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Partnership Initiative for Niger Delta (PIND).
According to their findings, the abandonment of important projects in the Niger Delta by the various institutions is a source of worry to most citizens of the region and therefore called on the state and National Assemblies to step up their oversight of these Agencies.
“This emphasizes the importance of having both the National and State Assemblies to step up their oversight functions and ensure the institutions are accountable to the people” the organizations said.
They lamented that In spite of the law establishing these institutions being clear on their mandates, it was discovered that in areas of citizen participation, public awareness, coordination and monitoring, there have been glaring inconsistencies in policies and procedures.
This, according to their findings, has led to poor development outcomes related to infrastructural development and public utilities.
“Our joint project provided is an innovative entry point for civil society to engage government intervention of these institutions to act productively.”
ANEEJ and LITE-Africa identified widespread corruption, colossal waste and abandonment of several capital projects as a major challenge confronting the effective and efficient administration of public institutions in Nigeria.
“What the situation goes to show is that conflicts in the region would have been mitigated if Niger Delta Institutions have had effective mechanisms to monitor their contracting and procurement processes.
“On the other hand, communities need to be properly equipped and empowered with skills and necessary information that will help them to demand for greater accountability from government agencies,” they said.
