Ogbonnaya Orji succeeds Waziri Adio as NEITI executive secretary

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of Orji Ogbonnaya Orji as the executive secretary of the Nigeria Extractives Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI).

Orji succeeds Waziri Adio who was appointed in February 2016.

His appointment, which takes effect from February 19, 2021, for a single term of five years, was announced by Willie Bassey, director of information at the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF).

“Mr President enjoins the new appointee to serve the nation with all sense of responsibility, honesty, diligence and promote good governance in the discharge of his duties,” the statement read.

Until his appointment, he was NEITI’s director of communications and advocacy.

Orji comes to the job with over 30 years experience in the public service, the media industry, and international development sector.

He is a broadcaster, Journalist, natural resource governance expert, political economist and development communications specialist.

Orji began his career at the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) and also worked on projects funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

He holds MSc degree and PhD in Political Economy and International Development from the University of Abuja.

He is an alumnus of the J. F Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford, the International Law Institute, George Town University, Washington D.C, the World Bank Institute, the African Development Bank Institute, the Lagos Business School, among other global institutions.

NEITI was established in 2004 as the key anti-corruption agency at the presidency to ensure transparency, accountability and governance of the country’s oil, gas and mining industries.

Information available on the Extractives Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) website shows that NEITI has identified $9.8 billion by various players in the extractive sector owed to the federal government, of which $2.4 billion has been recovered through NEITI’s efforts.