Economy
NEITI Moves to Uncover Real Owners of Oil, Mining Companies
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has expressed its willingness to unravel real owners of companies in the country, especially in the oil, gas and mining sectors.
The agency described Nigeria’s membership of Open Government Partnership (OGP) as a timely platform to achieve this aim.
Speaking at a Consultative Forum on OGP in Abuja, the Executive Secretary of NEITI, Mr Waziri Adio, disclosed that, “Knowing how much companies paid in the form of taxes, royalty, rents etc. and how much government received is important, but not enough. Knowing those who are the real owners of the companies is critical to checking corruption, money laundering, drug and terrorism financing, tax avoidance and evasion.”
Mr Adio urged the Federal Government to enact a special legislation that will compel companies in the extractive sector to make public the names and identities of their real owners.
He also called on the President to issue an Executive Order on compulsory beneficial ownership disclosure by extractive industries companies in Nigeria. He explained that such legislation can be embedded or part of the Petroleum Industry and Governance Bill (PIGB) and should also constitute amendments to the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA).
Mr Adio announced that nine countries including Nigeria have published EITI reports that disclosed the beneficial owners of one or more companies.
He also told participants that 43 EITI implementing countries have published roadmaps on beneficial ownership out of which twenty, including Nigeria, plan to establish public registers of beneficial owners by 2020.
The Executive Secretary noted that NEITI has published a road map on beneficial ownership disclosure which provided clear definition of who beneficial owners are the level of details to be disclosed and institutional framework that are required for effective implementation of beneficial ownership disclosure.
The document also defined Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) and their reporting obligations, challenges around data collection, reliability, accessibility, timeliness and provided clear guides on them.
The NEITI Executive Secretary identified the absence of specific legal framework that imposes mandatory beneficial ownership disclosure as a major challenge to the implementation of ownership transparency in Nigeria.
While acknowledging the existence of laws like the Companies and Allied Matters Act, Freedom of Information Act, Code of Conduct and Tribunal Act and Public Complaints Commission Act as relevant legislations for beneficial ownership, he noted that there are other policies of the Nigerian government that support efforts at ownership disclosures.
They include the Financial Action Task Force, Bank Verification Number, Automation and Access to Corporate Affairs Commission’s register.
Mr Adio remarked that because of the limitations of these policies and laws, they can at best be used as interim and complementary instruments while efforts should be made to make them more effective in demanding for the disclosure of the real owners of companies operating in Nigeria especially in the extractive industry.
He said in fulfilment of the requirement of the global EITI, NEITI duly reported beneficial ownership of companies covered in its 2012, 2013 and 2014 oil, gas and solid minerals audits.
According to him, “In the 2013 oil and gas audit by NEITI, forty one (41) out of the forty four (44) companies covered responded to NEITI questions and inquiries by returning the completed templates on beneficial ownership.
“However, most of the ownership information were about the legal owners as opposed to the beneficial owners or real owners of the Companies.”
Mr Adio identified delay and refusal to provide the real information on the audit templates, confusion over ownership structure (legal), conflict with existing confidentiality agreements, negative perception of beneficial ownership by covered entities (witch hunting), inconsistencies between beneficial ownership disclosures and information in CAC, use of surrogates by Politically Exposed Persons and government officials, as some of the challenges confronting NEITI.
Earlier in his presentation, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami, reiterated the commitment of the Federal Government to the implementation of beneficial ownership disclosure in Nigeria.
According to him, “More than ever before, the Government is determined to implement the legal basis on which beneficial ownership is founded from both an international and national perspectives”.
Mr Malami noted that some business entities exist solely on paper without the requisite obligation to list the real people who actually own or control them.
The Attorney General argued that “in the extractive industry, for example, these business entities are used to hold extractive rights and provide a channel for transferring extracted resources out of the host countries without paying specified royalties and taxes.
“These practices also allow the beneficial owners to avoid responsibility for violation of laws and regulations on labour and tax.”
Based on the requirement of the global EITI, NEITI has been doing some pioneering work in this direction since 2013.
The EITI defines beneficial owner as the natural person(s) who directly or indirectly benefits from, owns or controls the corporate entity. EITI standard requires that countries must disclose their beneficial owners by January 2020 and recommends establishment of beneficial ownership register.
The roadmap developed by NEITI on beneficial ownership envisaged the need for capacity building for all stakeholders that will be involved in the implementation of ownership transparency given the complexity of the extractive industries.
Nigeria was admitted into the Open Government Partnership (OGP) in 2016, following her commitment to the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Principles on Transparency, Accountability and Citizens Participation. One of the commitments under the Nigeria OGP National Action Plan is the need to ensure transparency of beneficial owners of businesses.
This commitment underscores the determination of Nigeria to fight corruption by ensuring transparency and accountability in the conduct of government business.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has noted that the N15.52 trillion allocation to debt servicing in the 2026 budget remains a significant fiscal burden.
LCCI Director-General, Mrs Chinyere Almona, said this on Tuesday in Lagos via a statement in reaction to the nation’s 2026 budget of N58.18 trillion, hinging the success of the 2026 budget on execution discipline, capital efficiency, and sustained support for productive sectors.
She noted that the budget was a timely shift from macroeconomic stabilisation to growth acceleration, reflecting growing confidence in the economy.
She lauded its emphasis on production-oriented spending, with capital expenditure of N26.08 trillion, representing 45 per cent of total outlays, and significantly outweighing non-debt recurrent expenditure of N15.25 trillion.
According to Mrs Almona, this composition supports infrastructure development, industrial expansion, and productivity growth.
However, she explained that the N15.52 trillion allocation to debt servicing underscored the need for stricter borrowing discipline, enhanced revenue efficiency, and expanded public-private partnerships to safeguard investments that promote growth.
She added that a further review of the 2026 budget revealed relatively optimistic macroeconomic assumptions that may pose fiscal risks.
“The oil price benchmark of $64.85 per barrel, although lower than the $75.00 benchmark in the 2025 budget, appears optimistic when compared with the 2025 average price of about $69.60 per barrel and current prices around $60 per barrel.
“This raises downside risks to oil revenue, especially since 35.6 per cent of the total projected revenue is expected to come from oil receipts.
“Similarly, the oil production benchmark of 1.84 million barrels per day is significantly higher than the current level of approximately 1.49 million barrels per day.
“Achieving this may be challenging without substantial improvements in security, infrastructure integrity, and sector investment,” she said.
Mrs Almona said the exchange rate assumption of N1,512 to the Dollar, compared with N1,500 in the 2025 budget and about N1,446 per Dollar at the end of November, suggests expectations of a mild depreciation.
She said while this may support Naira-denominated revenue, it also increases the cost of imports, debt servicing, and inflation management, with broader macroeconomic implications.
The LCCI DG added that the inflation projection of 16.5 per cent in 2026, up from 15.8 per cent in the 2025 budget and a current rate of about 14.45 per cent, appeared optimistic, particularly in a pre-election year.
She also expressed concern about Nigeria’s historically weak budget implementation capacity, likely to be further strained by the combined operation of multiple budget cycles within a single year.
Looking ahead, Mrs Almona identified agriculture and agro-processing, manufacturing, infrastructure, energy, and human capital development as key drivers of growth in 2026.
She said that unlocking these sectors would require decisive execution—scaling irrigation and agro-value chains, reducing power and logistics costs for manufacturers, and aligning education and skills development with private-sector needs.
The LCCI head stressed the need to resolve issues surrounding the Naira for crude, increase the supply of oil to local refineries to boost local refining capacity and conserve the substantial foreign exchange used for fuel imports.
“Overall, the 2026 Budget presents a credible opportunity for Nigeria to transition from recovery to expansion.
“Its success will depend less on the size of allocations and more on execution discipline, capital efficiency, and sustained support for productive sectors.
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited witnessed Santa Claus rally on Wednesday after it closed higher by 0.12 per cent.
Strong demand for Nigerian stocks lifted the All-Share Index (ASI) by 185.70 points during the pre-Christmas trading session to 153,539.83 points from 153,354.13 points.
In the same vein, the market capitalisation expanded at midweek by N118 billion to N97.890 trillion from the preceding day’s N97.772 trillion.
Investor sentiment on Customs Street remained bullish after closing with 36 appreciating equities and 22 depreciating equities, indicating a positive market breadth index.
Guinness Nigeria chalked up 9.98 per cent to trade at N318.60, Austin Laz improved by 9.97 per cent to N3.20, International Breweries expanded by 9.85 per cent to N14.50, Transcorp Hotels rose by 9.83 per cent to N170.90, and Aluminium Extrusion grew by 9.73 per cent to N16.35.
On the flip side, Legend Internet lost 9.26 per cent to close at N4.90, AXA Mansard shrank by 7.14 per cent to N13.00, Jaiz Bank declined by 5.45 per cent to N4.51, MTN Nigeria weakened by 5.21 per cent to N504.00, and NEM Insurance crashed by 4.74 per cent to N24.10.
Yesterday, a total of 1.8 billion shares valued at N30.1 billion exchanged hands in 19,372 deals versus the 677.4 billion shares worth N20.8 billion traded in 27,589 deals in the previous session, implying a slump in the number of deals by 29.78 per cent, and a surge in the trading volume and value by 165.72 per cent and 44.71 per cent apiece.
Abbey Mortgage Bank was the most active equity for the day after it sold 1.1 billion units worth N7.1 billion, Sterling Holdings traded 127.1 million units valued at N895.9 million, Custodian Investment exchanged 115.0 million units for N4.5 billion, First Holdco transacted 40.9 million units valued at N2.2 billion, and Access Holdings traded 38.2 million units worth N783.3 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigerian food and beverage company, Rite Foods Limited, has extended warm Yuletide greetings to Nigerians as families and communities worldwide come together to celebrate the Christmas season and usher in a new year filled with hope and renewed possibilities.
In a statement, Rite Foods encouraged consumers to savour these special occasions with its wide range of quality brands, including the 13 variants of Bigi Carbonated Soft Drinks, premium Bigi Table Water, Sosa Fruit Drink in its refreshing flavours, the Fearless Energy Drink, and its tasty sausage rolls — all produced in a world-class facility with modern technology and global best practices.
Speaking on the season, the Managing Director of Rite Foods Limited, Mr Seleem Adegunwa, said the company remains deeply committed to enriching the lives of consumers beyond refreshment. According to him, the Yuletide period underscores the values of generosity, unity, and gratitude, which resonate strongly with the company’s philosophy.
“Christmas is a season that reminds us of the importance of giving, togetherness, and gratitude. At Rite Foods, we are thankful for the continued trust of Nigerians in our brands. This season strengthens our resolve to consistently deliver quality products that bring joy to everyday moments while contributing positively to society,” Mr Adegunwa stated.
He noted that the company’s steady progress in brand acceptance, operational excellence, and responsible business practices reflects a culture of continuous improvement, innovation, and responsiveness to consumer needs. These efforts, he said, have further strengthened Rite Foods’ position as a proudly Nigerian brand with growing relevance and impact across the country.
Mr Adegunwa reaffirmed that Rite Foods will continue to invest in research and development, efficient production processes, and initiatives that support communities, while maintaining quality standards across its product portfolio.
“As the year comes to a close, Rite Foods Limited wishes Nigerians a joyful Christmas celebration and a prosperous New Year filled with peace, progress, and shared success.”
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