President Muhammadu Buhari approved the appointment of our very own Dr. Orji Ogbonnaya Orji as the Executive Secretary, Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), a move largely lauded by key stakeholders, including from within government, business and civil society, as a result of Dr Orji’s stellar performance within the agency over the years.
NEITI was established in 2004 as the key anti-corruption agency at the Presidency responsible for enthroning transparency, accountability and governance of the country’s oil, gas and mining industries.
Dr Orji’s appointment is for a single term of five years in accordance with the provision of Section 12 (2) (a) and 6 (3) of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (Establishment) Act, 2007. The appointment which was reported to have taken effect from 19th February, 2021, followed the exit of Waziri Adio, who has just completed his 5-year tenure. Before his appointment, Dr Orji was the agency’s Director of Communications and Advocacy.
Ogbonnya has a background in broadcasting and worked with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) where he managed several donor-funded projects. He is popular amongst Non-governmental organisations for his passion for advocacy and the extractive industry at large and his willingness to always provide support to these organisations in his capacity.
As one of the key stakeholder’s instrumental to our work with NEITI, Dr. Orji has graced CSR-in-Action’s foremost Sustainability in Extractive Industries (SITEI) Conference over the years rallying stakeholders within and beyond, being available as a resource person and generally bringing his wealth of experience on board. We anticipate some remarkable development in extractive industries transparency as we commence the tenure of an amiable, intelligent and committed civil servant of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.