The Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) has secured the top spot in the 2024 National Freedom of Information (FOI) compliance ranking, outshining 245 other Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
The ranking puts NIPC in the spotlight as an agency committed to transparency, responsiveness, and the proactive disclosure of information, a key requirement under Nigeria’s FOI Act.
The results were announced in Abuja at the FOI 2024 ranking unveiling event organised by a coalition of civil society organisations, including Accountability Lab Nigeria, the Public and Private Development Centre (PPDC), Media Rights Agenda, the International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR), BudgiT Foundation, and Right2Know. These organizations aim to foster transparency in governance by evaluating MDAs’ compliance with FOI requirements.
Following the NIPC, other MDAs in the top 10 include the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (2nd); Development Bank of Nigeria (3rd); Nigerian Export Processing Zone Authority (4th); Bureau of Public Service Reforms (5th); National Bureau of Statistics (6th); Tertiary Education Trust Fund (7th); Nigerian Export Promotion Council (8th); Bureau of Public Enterprises (9th); and National Agricultural Insurance Corporation (10th).
The report underscored significant disparities in performance across the MDAs, with the majority failing to meet minimum standards for FOI compliance.
James Emmanuel, a data analyst from ICIR, provided a detailed breakdown of the ranking process. MDAs were assessed based on three main criteria: proactive disclosure, responsiveness to information requests, and the overall level of information disclosure. These three parameters accounted for 100 points—60 points for proactive disclosure, 20 points for responsiveness, and 20 points for the level of disclosure.
Emmanuel revealed startling statistics: only 1.22% of the 245 MDAs assessed were fully proactive in disclosing information, 6.94% were partially proactive, while a staggering 91.84% were non-proactive. This suggests that a significant majority of Nigerian public institutions are not meeting the transparency standards set out by the FOI Act.
The event revealed that only 9.39% of MDAs fully disclosed the requested information, 5.71% partially disclosed information, and 84.9% failed to respond to information requests altogether. This data emphasizes a critical gap in the responsiveness of public institutions to citizens’ demands for information.
The ranking also highlighted operational challenges faced by many MDAs. According to Victoria Etim, Programme Officer at Rights to Know (R2K) Nigeria, the lack of proper data management on government websites has been a recurring issue. “Basically, we look into government websites to see if they have pertinent information, and we found that a number of institutions did not have any data available. This has been a huge problem for us during the assessment,” she explained.
Inactive and outdated websites pose significant barriers to transparency, as citizens are unable to access critical public information. Etim called on non-performing MDAs to improve their online presence and work toward greater openness in the future.
During the unveiling, Lucy Abagi, CEO of the PPDC, stressed the need for public institutions to adopt a culture of transparency. She encouraged government agencies to not only respond to FOI requests but also to proactively release public information, which would enable citizens to participate more effectively in governance.
“Public institutions should voluntarily release relevant information and provide timely access to public information for informed decision-making,” Abagi noted. She further emphasized that transparency is not just about compliance but about fostering accountability and enabling public oversight in governance.
Despite the poor performance of many MDAs, the ranking event serves as a reminder of the importance of the FOI Act in promoting transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s public sector. The theme of this year’s event, “Mainstreaming Access to Information and Participation in the Public Sector in Nigeria,” underscores the ongoing efforts to ensure that citizens are adequately informed and able to engage with the government on important issues.
As Nigeria looks to the future, it remains to be seen how many of the non-compliant MDAs will heed the call for greater openness. Nonetheless, the organizations behind the FOI rankings remain hopeful that continued pressure will lead to a more transparent and accountable government.
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