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The Nigeria
Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) said it has met
all the conditions spelt out last October by the Board of the
Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) for Nigeria’s
validation as ‘Compliant country’.

Sam Ohabunwa,
alternate chairman of the Task Force of Nigeria’s EITI validation, said
at the end of its meeting at the weekend in Abuja that its final and
comprehensive report on the six EITI board conditions would be
presented to a meeting on Wednesday of the National Stakeholders
Working Group (NSWG), including representatives of the Word Bank and
non governmental organisations.

Mr. Ohabunwa added
that the meeting would consider and approve the 2006-2008 oil and gas
industry audit report, the EITI board charter, and other measures taken
by Nigeria to meet the conditions, ahead of the January 15 deadline to
complete its assignment.

The EITI board had,
at its last meeting, adjudged Nigeria as close to compliant, giving six
conditions which the country must meet to attain full compliant status
on or by April, 2011.

Zainab Ahmed, NEITI
executive secretary, who described Nigeria’s attainment of full EITI
complaint status as strategic to the development of the country’s
extractive sector, said that the 2006-2008 oil and gas industry audits
would be ready this week.

Mrs. Ahmed said
some key NEITI staff in its technical department were drafted to work
with the auditors to ensure that processing and analysis of the data
already collated for the audit report, which is a major condition
required for Nigeria to attain full EITI compliant status, are
completed on or before January 12.

Besides, she said
the simplified version of the 2005 Audit Report, which was the second
condition by EITI, has been presented in a question and answer format
on the NEITI website as well as translated into some of the country’s
major languages for wider dissemination, while a template has been
designed to simplify the report of 2006 – 2008 audits as soon as it is
released.

Other conditions have been met

The other
conditions that have been met include production and adoption of a
Board Charter, which defines the role and powers of the NSWG and its
relationship with NEITI secretariat, with final vetting and approval to
be given during Wednesday’s meeting of the task force, while an
agreement has been developed to ensure comprehensive disclosure of
signature bonuses by oil and gas companies.

“Data on
outstanding signature bonuses for the 2005 Audit have been collected,
while measures have been taken to include same in the 2006 -2008 audit
as required by the global EITI,” she said, adding that steps have been
taken to ensure that all government disclosures are based on audited
accounts to international standards.

She added that
NEITI has collaborated with the office of the Auditor-General of the
Federation to extend the measures to ensure its audit to the
Nigeria-Sao Tome &Principe Joint Development Zone (JDZ), pointing
out that a tripartite committee has been reconstituted to address all
sundry issues raised by the EITI Board on the issue.

Meanwhile, steps
have been taken to reconstitute the Inter-Ministerial Task Team to
address outstanding remediation issues arising from the last audit in
2005.