The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has disclosed that it will release the 2017 audit report next week while that of 2018 will be released before the end of this year -December.
NEITI Executive Secretary, Waziri Adio, made this known Wednesday while defending the 2020 budget proposals of the agency before the House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream).
Adio said since 1999 to 2016, nine audit reports had been done in the oil and gas sector while seven audit reports in the solid minerals had been released.
On the 2020 budget, he stated that the agency
proposed a total of N1.5 billion for its operations and the proposed sum would be used to cater to its activities and consumables which include sporting events, publicity, local training, foreign trips, drugs, and medicals, as well as monitoring and evaluation among others.
Giving a breakdown of the estimate before the Committee, the Executive Secretary said that N828 million was earmarked for personnel cost, N337 million for overhead and N355 million for capital.
Highlighting the performance of the 2019 budget, Adio said a total of N1.3 billion was appropriated for the Agency, out of which N789 million was earmarked for personnel cost, N277 million for overhead and an N267 million was for capital expenditure.
He explained that N557 million was released for personnel which represents 70.8%, N138 million was released for overhead representing 50% and nothing has been released for capital projects.
The Executive Secretary lamented that the poor release of overhead funds hinders the agency’s performance, stressing that there is a global framework known as Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI) which is implemented in 52 countries across the world, including Nigeria.
He stated that Nigeria began implementation of EITI in 2004 and by 2007, it was supported by the NIETI Establishment Act which was passed by the National Assembly and signed into law.
Adio told the Committee that the Agency was interested in how much extracting companies pay and how much is remitted to the Federal Government and make public the audit report.
House Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream) had earlier pledged to support NIETI in its bid to achieve set objective of effectively policing the nation’s extractive industry.
Deputy Chairman of the Committee, Preye Oseke (APC, Bayelsa) said Members would look into the presentation of the Agency and act accordingly, saying just like the National Assembly, NEITI was also a watchdog organisation which ensures transparency in the oil sector.
