Civil society to monitor oil revenue in Nigeria

With the launching of the project tagged, "Publish What You Pay" campaign a civil society in Nigeria has began an intense campaign for transparency by oil companies operating in the country over oil revenue declared or recorded.
A coalition of civil society organisations across the country, gathered in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital to launch the programme aimed at showing the extent to which revenues from the natural resources industries are used to improve the lives of the citizenry.

The campaign also seeks to require all companies operating in Nigeria to publicly reveal the payments they make to government for the extraction of natural resources, and for the government to be transparent about its revenues in order to hold it accountable for their management.
The Publish What You Pay (PWYP) Campaign Nigeria is part of international movement calling for transparency in the extractive industries in resource rich but poor countries in order to combat corruption, reduce poverty and strengthen economic development.

The global campaign with about 190 NGOs and 50 NGOs in Nigeria as members, is expected to hold a national conference in Abuja during which the Federal Government will announce its plan to implement the "Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative" (EITI).
Already, President Olusegun Obasanjo is said to be committed to implement the EITI which is an international process involving many governments, companies, international organisations and the International Publish What You Pay Coalition.

President of the African Network for Environmental and Economic Justice (ANEEJ), Reverend David Ugolor said the coalition welcomed the commitment made by Obasanjo to implement the EITI and his endorsement of the Publish What You Pay campaign.
Ugolor at a two day national workshop on Publish What You Pay/Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative said the campaign has drawn significant attention at home and abroad to the need for the revenues from the oil and mineral industries to serve as a blessing for the people of Nigeria rather than a curse.