Advocacy visits

ADVOCACY VISITS TO THE SA’PEYI OF GARKI

CTA ED , Chief of Garki & Secretary of Garki Chiefdom

The Sa’peyi of Garki

Chief and OI Cultural Ambassadors

CTA ED, OI Ambassadors and other Tribes from Abuja.

CTA ADVOCACY VISIT TO NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR CULTURAL ORIENTATION (NICO)

The Centre for Transparency Advocacy led by the Executive Director of CTA Faith Nwadishi paid an advocacy visit to the National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO) on Friday 20/05/2022 at Kigoma Street, Zone 7, Wuse, FCT – Abuja. The team that included Mr. Jafaar of CHRICED, Zeichibu Henshi representing PWD, the media and CTA project staff was well received by the Executive Secretary of NICO Ado Mohammed Yahuza, Mr Alex Omijie Director Orientation and other senior staff of the institute.
Advocacy asks from the Executive Director of CTA are:

1) Collaborate with CTA on the Original Inhabitants project to see that a significant cultural piece is erected at the city gate
2) Collaborate with the agency for a cultural showcase through the cultural summit aimed at promoting the culture of the indigenous people of FCT in August.
3) CTA would like to send an open call to the 13 schools’ cultural clubs for the annual school competition.
Feedbacks / commitments from the Executive Secretary
The Executive secretary pointed out that CTA and the Agency has a lot in common and look forward to collaborating with the Agency.
– NICO would collaborate with NGOs whose mandates are relevant to what the Agency is doing
– He stated that NICO has established cultural clubs in 13 schools and since CTA is conducting a cultural competition among secondary schools in the FCT, NICO will collaborate with CTA and incorporate the activity into the clubs’ activities.
– CTA should send a proposal to NICO on the school competition and the agency is willing to incorporate such into the 3-day yearly youth cultural festival in secondary schools organized by the Agency

ED of CTA Faith Nwadish and Executive Secretary of NICO Ado Mohammed Yahuza

CTA ADVOCACY VISIT TO Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative(NEITI)

NEITI through the Executive Secretary Dr Orji Ogbonnaya Orji appreciated the CTA team and other cohort members in attendance. He said that NEITI is committed to

1. Support CTA with data and resource materials connected to extractive mining in the FCT

. 2. That NEITI will give technical support in training members and community in drafting and negotiating for quality community development agreement

. 3. NEITI will support in area of Contract Transparency.

4. NEITI will also use the CDA and works in Contract Transparency as a global model.

Group photographs of CTA team, NEITI team and Other Cohort members

ED CTA, Faith Nwadishi and Executive Secretary of NEITI, Orji Ogbonnaya Orji

COMMUNITY MAPPING, ENTRY AND COMMUNITY GATE KEEPERS MEETING

The community mapping engagement process / Entry was carried out by the CTA project team and held meetings and consultations with District Heads and members of the four project Communities. This was a second major activity introducing the OI Project to the various stakeholders and communities that are the target beneficiaries of the project.

Essentially, the method adopted was to carry out mapping for the community using relatively informal processes leading to the establishment of principles and techniques in community mobilization and participation. This involves recognizing the community leadership and its people and adopting the most appropriate approach in meeting, interacting, and working with them.

Equally, the community Gate Keepers meeting engagement process was led by The Executive Director, The Programmes manager, The Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning officer, The ICT Officer, and the Guide / Interpreter Mr. Sananu Jacob. The meeting provided a great opportunity to meet with the various District heads of target communities on how to initiate, nurture and sustain a desirable relationship with the communities for the purpose of securing the community’s’ interests, gain support from the community leaders and to ensure establishment of good working relationship in all aspect of the project.

CTA team with the acting District head of Kubwa

Esu Bwari chief Palace

Bwari Area Council

CTA team with the Chief of Ushafa community and his cabinet members

Mpape chief palace

CTA Advocacy visit to National Council for Arts and Culture

Centre for Transparency Advocacy (CTA) meeting with National Council for Arts and Development (NCAC) on the project Promoting Cultural Values and Rights of Original Inhabitants (Ois) In Federal Capital Territory (FCT) through Drama and Art Forms is aimed;

To engage and mobilize key stakeholders within the Cultural community who will collaborate with CTA on meeting the projects’ outcomes.

The DG expressed his gratitude on the concern of CTA to uphold culture and added that CTAs’ interest on culture shows that there is hope for cultural revival.

There are delighted about the cultural summit and made it clear that NCAC is also involved in their own at their level through NAPTIC.

He thanked the CTA team for siting the fact that there is no symbol that reflects the culture of the OI at the city gate and agreed that something should be done about it for we must learn to appreciate our neighbor.

He corrected a statement made by the ED on the OI of Abuja been stateless and went further to explain that the constitution captures Abuja as a state but being managed by a Minister.

He requested that CTA should send an official document specifying areas they can collaborate with the project.

On the issue of attendance, he said it would be difficult to fill the attendance sheet but they can make available list of those in the meeting because filling our attendance means that NCAC is already giving us a blank cheque that if CTA needs anything from NCAC can be delivered and filling the attendance by hand can be implicating. There they will not be filling it.

He thanked CTA for coming and added that they are always delighted to receive Organizations like CTA.

Executive Director of CTA, Faith Nwadishi

CTA team and the DG of NCAC

Director General of NCAC

Vote of thanks rendered by Mr. MacDonald Ekemezie.

CTA Advocacy visit to Ministry of Mines and Stceel

OBJECTIVES

Centre for Transparency Advocacy (CTA) meeting with Ministry of Mines and Steel Development on the project Promoting Cultural Values and Rights of Original Inhabitants (OIs) In Federal Capital Territory (FCT) through Drama and Art Forms is aimed;

· To engage and mobilize key stakeholders within the extractive community who will collaborate with CTA on meeting the projects’ outcomes.

The Executive Director of CTA thanked the Minister for giving us audience. She went further to explained that CTA has been awarded a 2 years project on Promoting Cultural Values and Rights of Original Inhabitants (OIs) In Federal Capital Territory (FCT) through Drama and Art Forms supported by MacArthur Foundation through Resource Centre for Human Rights & Civic Education (CHRICED).

She talked about the challenges faced by some of these indigenes in dealing with mining companies and their obedience to the community development agreement (CDA). She gave an instance with Kubwa village where negotiations were made with Zeberced company carrying out quarry activities in the district but negotiations not kept. So, based on objective 2 and 3 of the project which states;

Objective 2

“Improved level of responsiveness of government institutions and actors to address the injustices arising from extractive mining through advocacy for mining contract transparency”.

Objective 3

“Improved basic service delivery and accountability for the benefit of Original Inhabitant peoples of the FCT through a Community information Centre that will be established”

She made it clear that Centre for Transparency advocacy would the Ministry to collaborate with us in seeing that the stated objectives are met.

AREAS WHERE COLLABORATION IS NEEDED.

– Needs a technical person form the Ministry to help in the training of community people in building negotiation skills.

– Support in developing and renewing of community development agreement.

See full speech attachment in the Annex.

RESPONSE OF THE MINISTER OF MINES AND STILL DEVELOPMENT

The Minister corrected that community development agreements (CDAs) are renewed not reviewed. He explained that when mining operations starts, it is always capital intensive and may not start yielding profit immediately except if is a quarry activity. They can be in the exploring phase for years but can give good will to the community so the community should not always expect much from them at this stage. The risk of exploration is that at the end of it, they might see that what they are trying to get is of no economic value and this phase could take as long as 4-5 years of time, energy and money.

Per chance what is explored is of great value then the company moves from the exploring stage to exploitation stage (then the company would make money and the community would feel the impact of it). With this there is need for a community development agreement with the community.

He appreciated CTA for what they are doing and said it was timely because the benefits that come to the community are often hijacked by very few people being the representatives of the people and advised CTA that the advocacy should be broad and wide where by everyone is pulled along. Let the people be sensitize on their rights and should be more interested in that.

CTA ED and The Minister of Mines and Steel development

CTA team and the CHRICED team

CTA ADVOCACY VISIT TO MINISTRY OF ENVIROMENTS

Advocacy visit to FCT Secondary Education Board

Centre for Transparency Advocacy (CTA) is privileged to work with a large repertoire of media partners. The project was launched on December 14, 2021. CTA will be implementing this project through well thought out activities that will “enable existing Original Inhabitants efforts to revamp dying cultural values, treasures and repositories.” For these reasons, exploring cultural sites are our key targets because this will help us not only showcase the culture of the OI but also know the history behind its existence.

OBJECTIVES

Ensure support from the school board in organizing different Government Secondary schools to participate in the competition

The team was warmly welcomed to by the FCT SEB (CC) DD, who gladly invited us to his office and introduced himself as Mr. Shehu Jibril and also introduced his colleague with him as Mrs. Oby.

Mr. MacDonald introduced the CTA team and gave the floor to the Executive Director to state the purpose for the visit.

The Executive Director thanked the board for making out time to meet with us and explained that sometime ago the Organization planned something with the board and it did not pull through and hoped that this one would and looked forward with working with the team on this project. She added that CTA has a running project of 2 years supported by MacArthur foundation through CHRICED on Promoting Cultural Values and Environmental Rights of Original Inhabitants (OIs) in Federal Capital Territory (FCT) through Drama and Art Forms and one of the ways is to catch them young through school competition which falls under the objective one of the project and already established community theatre group which have put up a documentary that would be launched soon and help promote the culture of the indigenous people of FCT.

OUTCOME OF THE COMPETITION.

A book compilation on poetry from all the input and entries of the children of which they would take full credit for their work and launched during the cultural summit of the global indigenous people. She stated that that is why CTA is seeking collaboration with the board to achieve this.

RESPONSE FROM MR. SHEHU JIBRIL

He pointed out a statement by the Executive Director saying “CTA has attempted to do something with the board and it did not pull through” he asked for reasons and hope that future collaborations would work.

The Executive Director made it clear that 4 schools per Area Council and there would be remuneration for the judges but most importantly is an opportunity to add value to the report of the board and to what the children is doing.

She reiterated that the children would be given full credit for their work and their teachers. The said the finals would be in August, conceding with the global indigenous day.

Mrs. Oby advised that the finals should be done earlier because by August the school children would be preparing for their exam and they would not want to disturb them and added that September is not also possible because the children would be on holiday and no parent would permit their kids out.