To promote career advancement of women, the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) and the Nigeria in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) said they have agreed to establish an inter-agency cooperation between the two organisations.
The Executive Secretary of NEITI, Orji Ogbonnaya Orji and the Chairman of NiDCOM, Abike Dabiri-Erewa said during this year’s International Women’s Day Celebration at the NEITI House, Abuja that the inter-agency cooperation would cover capacity building programmes, environmental, gender, social economic development challenges that frustrate women career advancement in public service.
Orji described International Women’s Day as a very important annual event for NEITI to join the rest of the World to highlight, identify and celebrate the valued contributions of women to national development generally and the Extractive Industries in particular.
“It is a day to advocate for equity, inclusivity, gender justice, wider opportunities for women in the oil, gas and mining sectors in the areas of job opportunities, career advancement and security in work environment,” he said.
The NEITI Executive Secretary underlined that the global Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) standards particularly require implementing countries, including Nigeria, to promote greater diversity in decision making, document and publicly disclose women participation, gender, social, environmental issues in the extractive Industries.
The goal of EITI Reports, he explained, was to highlight the risks women were confronted with in rural host communities where oil, gas and mining exploration activities take place, document such risks and the remedy required.
He lamented that information and data from NEITI Industry Reports on women participation in the Extractive Sector remain quite discouraging and far from national average.
For instance, he said the 2021 Oil and Gas Industry Report on employment data from 56 out of 70 oil companies disclosed that out of 19,171 employees, 15,639, or 82% were men, while only 3,532 or 18%) of the employees were women.
The disclosure, he pointed out, was far from the national average of 35 percent, based the global benchmark on affirmative action.
From the same gender balance data, all top high level management positions in the industry,he noted, were dominated by men.
To reverse this negative trend through deliberate advocacy and engagements, Orji announced that NEITI, under his leadership, has deliberately created Gender and Environmental Unit in the Policy, Planning & Strategy (PPS) Department to take care of those issues that deter women from attaining their rightful roles and positions.
This Unit, he said, was set up to ensure women’s inclusion in extractives governance and EITI processes, report on the gender distribution and participation in the extractive sector issues.
Addressing the special forum, the special Guest of Honour and Chief Executive of Nigeria in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa advised career women in public service to cultivate the culture of self-confidence, invest in self-education and skills development, discipline, integrity hard work, professionalism and passion to create public value in any given assignment.
She advised all career women in public service to place priority attention to family above all other choices.
Abike Dabiri explained that the inter-agency cooperation and partnership with NEITI would help document and mobilise professional Nigerian career women in the Diaspora, especially from 57 EITI member countries to contribute in diverse ways towards national development.
On the current ‘Japa syndrome’, through which some Nigerians flee the country to seek greener pastures abroad, Abike Dabiri-Erewa advised those wishing to move abroad to seek adequate information and guidance before doing so, warning that life abroad could be worse and more difficult than challenges at home.
High profile women in top positions from ministries, departments and agencies, the media and civil society joined NEITI women to mark the day with inspiring speeches.
