By Chimezie Godfrey
The Initiative for Research, Innovation and Advocacy in Development (IRIAD) has called on the Federal Government and state governments to deepen transparency, accountability and citizen participation reforms as activities marking the 2026 Open Government Partnership (OGP) Week come to an end.
In a public statement issued on Friday to commemorate the end of the week-long OpenGovWeek 2026 celebration, the organisation said Nigeria must sustain the momentum generated during the event through concrete implementation of open governance commitments.
The statement, signed by Princess Hamman-Obels, noted that the 2026 edition of Open Government Week, which commenced on May 18, was held under the theme, “Reflect, Rethink, and Redouble Collective Efforts.”
According to IRIAD, the commemoration also marked 15 years of the global OGP initiative and 10 years of Nigeria’s participation in the partnership aimed at promoting transparency, accountability, inclusion and citizen participation.
The organisation said various stakeholders across Nigeria organised activities such as press conferences, awareness walks, podcasts, policy dialogues and social media advocacy campaigns to deepen public understanding of open governance.
IRIAD stated that Nigeria had recorded notable achievements under the OGP framework at both national and subnational levels.
The group listed some national-level achievements to include the launch of the Citizens’ Delivery Tracker, establishment of the Beneficial Ownership Register, deployment of the Nigeria Open Contracting Portal, implementation of participatory budgeting processes and increased compliance with the Freedom of Information Act.
According to the statement, the reforms had improved citizens’ participation in governance and strengthened relations between government and civil society organisations.
At the subnational level, the organisation disclosed that 28 states, four area councils in the Federal Capital Territory, as well as Anambra East and Kaduna South local government areas had joined the OGP subnational initiative.
However, it expressed concern that eight states, namely Lagos, Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, Ogun, Benue, Kwara and Borno, were yet to sign up to the initiative.
The organisation also observed that only six out of Nigeria’s 774 local government areas had joined the framework, describing the development as a major gap in grassroots citizen inclusion.
IRIAD called on the Federal Government to urgently sign and implement the OGP National Action Plan IV with adequate funding and stronger political commitment across Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
The organisation also urged states yet to join the initiative to do so without delay, while encouraging participating states to fully implement State Action Plans to ensure citizens feel the impact of open governance reforms.
The group further charged civil society organisations to sustain advocacy and accountability efforts, while urging citizens to actively engage government through platforms such as the Citizens’ Delivery Portal.
“Open governance is not a slogan; it is a promise of democracy that works for everyone,” the statement added.
OGP Week: Group Urges FG, States To Deepen Transparency, Accountability Reforms
