The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative has warned that Nigeria risks losing substantial foreign investment in the oil, gas, and mining sectors if it performs poorly in the upcoming Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative validation exercise.
NEITI Executive Secretary, Musa Sarkin-Adar, issued the warning on Wednesday in Abuja during a stakeholder engagement session with civil society organisations and media representatives ahead of Nigeria’s 2026 EITI Validation, which is scheduled to begin on July 1.
According to Sarkin-Adar, the validation exercise is crucial to Nigeria’s standing among international investors, noting that transparency and accountability have become key factors influencing investment decisions worldwide.
He noted that despite Nigeria’s vast natural resource wealth and its position as one of Africa’s leading investment destinations, concerns about governance practices and transparency continue to undermine investor confidence and influence investment decisions.
He added that the briefing formed an important part of the validation process, helping to clarify the roles of stakeholders and enhance Nigeria’s preparedness for what is regarded as a crucial assessment of the country’s transparency and accountability standards in the oil, gas, and mining sectors.
“Most Nigerians are not fully aware of the functions and importance of NEITI. NEITI is an enabler for investment in the oil and gas and mining sectors because our assessments and reports help guide foreign investors who want to invest in Nigeria.
“Nigeria is an investment haven. Everybody wants to come and do business in Nigeria, and I believe it is more rewarding than many other places. However, scrutiny of investments all over the world matters, and that is what NEITI is there to guarantee and ensure.
“If Nigeria loses this process, investors, particularly foreign investors in the oil and gas and mining sectors, may decide not to come and invest in Nigeria. Countries like Guyana, Tanzania and others are increasingly attracting investments because of the standards they have established,” he said.
The NEITI boss expressed concern over what he described as inadequate cooperation from several government institutions whose support is critical to the validation process.
He specifically criticised the slow response of key agencies, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, the Ministry of Finance, and the Budget Office, noting that many of them often fail to respond to official correspondence promptly, thereby hampering preparations for the validation exercise.
According to him, many stakeholders continue to misunderstand NEITI’s mandate, often expecting the agency to function as a regulator, whereas its primary role is to promote transparency, accountability, and good governance in Nigeria’s extractive industries.
“In previous audit reports, Nigeria almost lost about `$7bn because some companies failed to pay what they were supposed to pay. The upcoming audit report, which will be released soon, has already shown from preliminary findings that there are many issues that will require action.
“When the report is released, I will advise the government to take the necessary actions against all defaulting companies. Where necessary, penalties should be imposed in accordance with the law, and persistent offenders may even be prevented from doing business in this country,” he stated.
Sarkin-Adar also called on civil society organisations to strengthen their advocacy efforts for greater transparency and accountability in the recovery, management, and utilisation of revenues uncovered through NEITI’s audit processes.
