The journey to a national chapter of Transparency International, (TI) in Nigeria shortened today as board members and management of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, (CISLAC) commenced Strategic Action Plan Updates and Validation Meeting on TI Tools and Principles in Abuja. The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has been a National Contact of TI. It has the mandate by the TI- International Secretariat (TI-S) in Berlin, Germany to facilitate the formation of a full-fledged TI National Chapter in Nigeria. This is being pursued within the framework of CISLAC’s “Tackling Inequalities in Nigeria through Transparent, Accountable and Participatory Governance” which is being implemented in collaboration with TI- S in Berlin, with support from the Ford Foundation under their governance project.
The two-day meeting is not only over viewing the principles and tools by which TI works, it is also engaging in a critical assessment of CISLAC in relation to eligibility requirement for accreditation. These range from organisational structure, staff appraisal and the harmony between CISLAC’s strategic action plan along with TI’s updated action plan earlier developed in 2013 for Nigeria. The meeting has an observer from the TI international secretariat in Berlin who gave an elaborate briefing on TI anti-corruption tools, including newer ones that have responded to some of the shortcomings of the more popular Corruption Perception Index by which TI is more known across the world.
Declaring open the meeting, Malam Y Z Y’au, the Chairman of the Board, described the meeting as a very important one because it provides an opportunity for the all inclusive self-assessment on the way of CISLAC to becoming a national chapter of TI. Mallam Y’au said it is not over yet but a concrete step. The meeting continues tomorrow.
