Leadership (Abuja)
Isaac Aimurie
15 September 2008
President Yar'Adua over the weekend said that six years after its birth the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative is not an empty call but can work.
This he said in a key note address which was read by Vice-President, Goodluck Jonathan, at the West African EITI conference held at Ecowas secretariat Abuja.
According to him, EITI is propelled by the faith that extractive resources can indeed promote growth, enhance poverty reduction and drive sustainable development. Hence twenty -three resource rich countries across the globe have heeded the call, that transparent and accountable management of extractive resources can make the difference.
Commenting on the oil sector, the president stated that oil is the mainstay of Nigeria's economy, accounting for about forty per cent of our gross domestic product and more than eighty percent of our foreign earnings.
President Yar'Adua further stressed that fifty years after Nigeria started exporting oil in commercial quantity, she was yet to diversify her economy satisfactorily, provide requisite physical infrastructure, and develop her human capital adequately. But rather, oil seemed to fuel corruption and bad governance.
He also expressed government's desire to formally pass the EITI validation test and move up to the status of a compliant country.
"Our Administration's inauguration of a fifteen member National Stakeholders Working Group (NSWG) in January 2008,and the approval for the first time ever of a budget for NEITI, are indicative of our determination to fully support the work of the initiative" he said.
Commenting on the need for the conference, the Chairman of NEITI, Professor Assisi Asobie in his remark, stated that the West Africa EITI conference was important as African countries feature prominently among states in which there is a very high dependence on extractive industries, especially hydrocarbon, for their total revenue.
He further highlighted some objectives of the conference which are: to secure commitment by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), support fund and host a unit programme or centre on resource watch in West Africa. To secure commitment from the African Union (AU), to pass a resolution in support of the EITI, and also to support the draft UN resolution on EITI, sponsored by other countries, with Azerbaijan and Nigeria, as leaders among EITI implementing countries.
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