ICPC, NUPRC strengthen partnership on transparency in oil sector

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) have pledged to strengthen collaboration to promote transparency, accountability and integrity in Nigeria’s upstream petroleum sector.

The ICPC Chairman, Dr Musa Adamu Aliyu, SAN, made the commitment on Friday when he received the NUPRC Chief Executive, Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, and members of her management team on a courtesy visit to the ICPC headquarters in Abuja.

This was contained in a statement signed by the spokesperson of the commission, Okor J. Odey, and made available to the press in Kano.

Aliyu stressed the strategic importance of the NUPRC to Nigeria’s economy, saying any challenges affecting the effectiveness of the petroleum sector regulator could have far-reaching consequences for the country’s economic wellbeing.

He called for closer collaboration between the two institutions, particularly in information sharing, investigations, procurement processes and efforts to prevent wastage and leakages in the sector.

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“Integrity in your sector is very important. We need investors, and if we are not transparent, it will be difficult for NUPRC to operate optimally,” Aliyu said.

He noted that corruption was more likely to thrive where institutional safeguards and systems were weak, adding that effective cooperation between regulatory and anti-corruption agencies was essential to strengthening governance.

The ICPC chairman also commended the NUPRC for its strong performance in the Commission’s Ethics and Integrity Compliance Scorecard (EICS), describing the achievement as evidence of its commitment to ethical standards and institutional integrity.

He said the ICPC would also benefit from the NUPRC’s technical expertise in investigations involving the petroleum sector.

Earlier, Eyesan said the upstream petroleum industry remained a major source of revenue for Nigeria, stressing that its capital-intensive nature required effective regulation, strong governance and an enabling environment for investment.

She described the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) as a “game changer” designed to restructure the regulatory environment and restore investor confidence, particularly following years of declining investment in the sector.

According to her, the NUPRC is also working to unlock Nigeria’s gas resources while strengthening governance across upstream operations.

Eyesan disclosed that the commission was reviewing the qualification criteria for its regular bidding exercises following challenges involving some indigenous operators that lacked the financial and technical capacity to develop awarded assets.

She said disputes had also stalled the development of some assets, making it necessary to strengthen the qualification process for prospective awardees.

The NUPRC chief executive further announced that the commission would organise an onboarding programme for successful awardees in October.

She expressed the regulator’s intention to involve the ICPC in the programme to sensitise operators on good governance, integrity and regulatory compliance.

Eyesan thanked the ICPC for its support and assured the anti-corruption commission that the NUPRC would continue to collaborate and share relevant concerns with it to improve operations and strengthen accountability in the upstream petroleum sector.