Nigeria aims for a 100% EITI validation score by 2026

By Obas Esiedesa

The Federal Government has expressed confidence that Nigeria will secure a perfect score in the 2026 validation of the global Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). The Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Musa Sarkin Adar, stated that the country is fully prepared for the upcoming assessment.

“We are ready for them. Nigerians are very resilient people and very brilliant people. We are not afraid of their coming, and I assure you this time around, we must get that 100 per cent, and we will get it,” Adar said during a meeting with civil society organisations and the media, organised by NEITI and the Rule of Law and Anti‑Corruption in Nigeria (RoLAC) in Abuja.

He added that the administration of President Bola Tinubu remains committed to implementing EITI standards and maintaining Nigeria’s membership in the global transparency initiative.

According to Adar, NEITI has intensified engagements with key institutions to address outstanding corrective actions. The organisation has held bilateral meetings with the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Federal Inland Revenue Service, Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF), and other agencies.

Adar also noted that NEITI has met with the EITI International Secretariat and Nigeria’s validation team to review timelines and assess readiness. He urged civil society organisations and the media to actively participate, as their contributions will form part of the assessment.

“If Nigeria loses this process, the investors, especially foreign investors in the oil and gas and mining sectors, may not wish to come and invest in Nigeria,” he warned, stressing that EITI compliance has become a critical benchmark for investors seeking transparency and accountability in resource‑rich countries.

CSO representative on the NEITI board, Dr. Erisa Danladi, also spoke. He said the validation process “enables civic actors to take stock of collective achievements, identify existing gaps, and explore practical ways of strengthening transparency, accountability and good governance within Nigeria’s extractive sector.”