A recent report by the Centre for Fiscal Transparency and Public Integrity (CeFTPI) has revealed poor transparency and accountability scores for 510 ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) in Nigeria. According to the “Transparency and Integrity Index 2024,” which evaluated 514 MDAs, only four agencies were rated as highly transparent.
During the report’s release in Abuja, CeFTPI’s Executive Director, Umar Yakubu, explained that the assessment focused on various factors, including anti-bribery policies, whistleblower protection, conflict of interest policies, and citizen engagement. Yakubu noted that the aim was to measure the openness of public institutions by analyzing the availability of critical governance information.
Additional evaluation criteria included budget allocations, budget implementation, revenue remittance, and audits from the past eight years. Agencies such as the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Ministry of Police Affairs, and Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation received some of the lowest scores, with only 4 out of 100.
Several others, including the Nigeria Football Federation, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, and the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), scored just 8 out of 100. Major institutions such as the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission were among those marked as lacking transparency.
On a brighter note, four agencies achieved commendable transparency scores: the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission, Development Bank of Nigeria, and Nigerian Institute for Advanced Legal Studies.
The Director-General of the Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR) highlighted the bureau’s collaboration with CeFTPI to drive reforms across government institutions. He acknowledged the slow progress but emphasized plans to intensify efforts in raising awareness about transparency and accountability among public institutions.
News Editor