Global Advanced Research Journal of Management and Business Studies (GARJMBS) ISSN: 2315-5086 March 2014 Vol. 3(3), pp 090-099

Copyright © 2013 Global Advanced Research Journals   

Review

The Political Economy of Enforcing Neiti Act 2007 in Oil and Gas Sector: A Critical Appraisal of Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (Neiti), 2003-2010

Okeke V.O.S    

Department Of Political Science, Faculty Of Social Sciences, Anambra State University,Uli, Anambra State, Nigeria.

Email: okekevos@yahoo.com 

Accepted 11 March 2014

Abstract

Nigeria is abundantly endowed with mineral resources, and of all these mineral resources oil and gas with the proven 600 trillion cubic feet reserve of gas and estimated 40 billion barrels of crude oil reserve is the most strategic and fundamental to the Nigerian economy such that Nigeria is reputed to be the seventh largest oil producing country in the whole world. Yet Nigerians have been wallowing in abject poverty with inadequate infrastructural and social amenities, poor standard of living, low per capita income, and all other forms of poor human development index; often attributed to corruption, unaccountability and lack of transparency leading to cases of under-paid revenues and unaccounted oil produce in the Nigerian oil and gas sector as a result of structural fiscal/financial leakages with the collaboration of oil multinationals and high level officials in Nigerian petroleum sector. Even with the establishment of NEITI in 2004 and the enactment of NEITI Act 2007, the culture of impunity and corruption continued unabated resulting to little or no effect on the quality of living of Nigerian citizens. The thrusts of this paper are that, one, NEITI lacks institutional capacity to ensure that oil and gas multinationals comply with the international best practices in declaring their accounts and payments to Nigerian government, and two, NEITI Act of 2007 inadequately empowers NEITI to compel oil and gas multinationals to carry out remediation of their account. 

Keywords: Political Economy, Oil and Gas Sector, Neiti Act, Industries.