TI: President Obasanjo was one of the earliest supporters of EITI, but his term in office has nearly come to its end. Does the political will for this initiative extend beyond the Obasanjo administration?

OE: Yes, surely, because NEITI is coded into legislation. It is law; one cannot simply decide to ignore it. There is also an NEITI Secretariat operating in Nigeria, and civil society is heavily involved.

TI : Nigerians are believed to have little confidence in the integrity of people involved in the oil and gas chain. Has this changed?

OE: You can see it in the papers; you can see it when people write in to the NEITI Secretariat, when NGOs continue to ask for more transparency. There is now an acknowledgement that extending the boundaries of openness and transparency to industry can be taken as a given.

TI: What challenges still face NEITI?

OE: Volumes of crude oil that are unaccounted for. Our measurements are of oil that reached export terminals, rather than oil pumped directly from oilfields. There are issues of metering infrastructure. What is currently in place does not follow the oil through the pipeline, which presents an infrastructural and capacity challenge.

TI: How has the implementation of NEITI changed the government of Nigeria’s working relationship with oil and gas companies? Which companies are involved in Nigeria?

OE: The implementation of NEITI has certainly generated more interest as it is currently in the minds of companies that this is one government that is driving the transparency initiative. Because Nigeria has made the publication of payments and revenues mandatory, there is a sense on the part of industry that government is not fooling around.

TI: How much of a role did NEITI play in Nigeria’s strong economic performance in 2005?

OE: The NEITI definitely helped improve economic performance. The NEITI is a pillar of the administration’s comprehensive anti-corruption programme. It was central, among other critical policies, to the debt reduction granted to our country and to the BB-sovereign rating accorded our economy by both Fitch and Standard & Poor’s. These two major outcomes have implications for our improved economic indicators. Above all, the deeper scrutiny of the extractive sector is instigating better assessment and reporting of revenue activities by all operators – in both government and industry.

TI: NEITI is often lauded as the most extensive application of the EITI process. How does NEITI go beyond EITI principles?

OE: It is quite simple. The EITI requires countries to publish what they receive and what they pay. In Nigeria, it is not just about publishing these figures. We also require an audit to determine if what was paid in the first place is accurate. This looks at issues such as cost, licensing and procurement, by conducting three separate audits: a process audit, a physical audit and a finance audit.

TI: How many Nigerians would you estimate are aware of this initiative?

OE: At the end of the audit process, I would estimate about 45 percent and growing.

TI: How can civil society strengthen EITI, both in Nigeria and in other implementing countries?

OE: It is important to build the right linkages, and to create allies for this initiative across a wide range of sectors. Civil society should also profit from the power of the internet to spread information and share experiences.

TI: What are your plans for the future?

OE: I will continue to work with the NEITI from the outside, and provide a strong voice from civil society.