The federal government yesterday said it was set to strengthen the framework for Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) as well as gender reporting in the extractive industry.
The Executive Secretary, Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Dr. Ogbonnaya Orji, made the disclosure at the, "Validation Workshop on the Development of Frameworks for Reporting Gender and Environmental Impacts in the Extractive Industry," in Abuja.
Orji noted that two areas of concern when he took over last year, were areas of social and environmental impacts of extractive industry operations, explaining that NEITI had set out immediately to develop a framework for both gender and environmental impact reporting.
He explained that the framework would enable NEITI not only meet the specific requirements, but also help it define the scope to reflect all issues of gender and environmental impacts within its local context. He noted that there was the need to mainstream gender and environmental impact reporting within existing government systems and institutions equipped with the mandate and capacity to do so.
With the implementation of data mainstreaming and systematic disclosure, the relevant institutions, Orji stated, would begin to take on both responsibilities to generate and publish data in real time.
"This will add significant value to transparency and accountability by further increasing the timeliness and relevance of data. While NEITI is reporting industry data through the traditional process of data collection and reconciliation, the long-term goal is to mainstream disclosure practices," he added.
In his keynote address, the Chairman, NEITI Board, Olusegun Adekunle, said while the international EITI was established with the objective of disclosing payments and revenues from extractive resources, the global institution had made steady and significant progress in facilitating openness though the entire processes in the resource extraction value chain.
"From prospecting, to licencing, to contracting, to ownership, production, sale and utilisation of the proceeds of mineral resources, the EITI has adopted a roots-to-branch strategy in facilitating accountability in the management of extractive resources.
"The global initiative has also brought innovation beyond requiring disclosure in the processes and their outputs to requiring reporting of impacts and outcomes," he noted.
He recalled that in 2019, resource extracting countries committed to disclose data and information on gender and the environment.
This decision, he said, was in recognition of the growing impact that the activities in the extractive industry continued to have on human communities and the natural environment.
According to him, the decision also signposted the urgent need for global and country level action to facilitate gender inclusion and environmental accountability in the extractive sector.
"Armed with the initial outputs of these studies and engagements, we are close to defining the parameters for disclosure on gender and the environmental impacts. The framework will aggregate the knowledge that we have generated in the last two years," he explained.
Adekunle stressed that Nigeria needed data that would help government to design policies to improve the conditions of its target communities and the environment.
The Director, Environmental Impact Assessment at the Ministry of Environment, Mr. Abass Suleiman, in his comments, pledged the support of the ministry to the initiative introduced into the NEITI standards.
According to him, environmental impact assessment and gender framework remained a core part of the of the activities of the ministry, noting that the cooperation enjoyed between the ministry and NEITI was long-standing.
"We are pleased that environment reporting is being introduced. There's a law on EIA where there's declaration of principles and EIA for development which entails public participation.
"The ministry of environment issues these EIA certificates. Infusion of our process will ensure international acceptability. We have always had working synergy with NEITI where we give information to NEITI on companies in the Extractive Industries.
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"We will be more proactive to ensure NEITI is taken on board before any certification and approval is given, going forward," he stated.
Also speaking, a Director in the Ministry of Mines and Steel, Esther Udoh, explained that before now, mining was the mainstay before the discovery of oil, pointing out that with the discovery of oil, mining was relegated.
While lamenting that illegal mining has brought degradation, she disclosed that the ministry spends millions to replenish abandoned sites by the illegal miners.
She said while artisanal miners use basic equipment, the degradation of the environment through their activities was massive.
"So we have brought them together as cooperative and trained them on safe mining methods to prevent degradation. Children and women are involved. But the ministry is aware of the importance of environmental safety. We are in line with what NEITI is doing and we welcome all collaborations," she said.
