The Senate on Wednesday moved to tighten government oversight of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and foreign donor funding, advancing a landmark bill designed to bring billions of naira in grants, humanitarian assistance and development interventions under a unified regulatory and accountability framework.
The proposed legislation, sponsored by Senator Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo (Gombe North), passed second reading amid growing concerns among lawmakers over the lack of transparency in the management of foreign aid, weak coordination of donor-funded projects and the potential security implications of unregulated funding.
If enacted, the bill will establish a comprehensive legal framework to monitor all foreign assistance entering Nigeria, requiring donor-funded projects to be registered, tracked and integrated into national development planning and government budgets.
Leading the debate, Dankwambo said Nigeria receives substantial support from bilateral and multilateral development partners every year but lacks a central mechanism for coordinating, monitoring and evaluating how such resources are deployed.
He argued that donor-funded projects currently operate through fragmented structures across ministries, departments, agencies, state governments and NGOs, creating accountability gaps, duplication of projects and weak fiscal oversight.
To address these challenges, the bill proposes the establishment of a National Donor Coordination Framework, a central database for all foreign assistance, mandatory registration of donor-funded programmes, public disclosure of funding and implementation details, and sanctions for the diversion, misuse or failure to register foreign-funded projects.
Lawmakers overwhelmingly backed the proposal, insisting that closer monitoring of NGOs and donor funding would improve transparency and strengthen public confidence in the use of development assistance.
Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin said while foreign assistance received directly by the Federal Government is reflected in the national budget, significant funds channelled through NGOs remain largely outside public scrutiny.
“We can’t tell what money goes into the coffers of NGOs. Fraudsters set up bogus, pseudo NGOs and collect money from there,” Barau said, urging lawmakers to close existing regulatory gaps.
Senate Chief Whip Tahir Monguno described the bill as timely, noting that donor agencies often determine the implementation of projects without adequate coordination with Nigerian authorities.
Senator Adamu Aliero said previous oversight activities had revealed instances where donor funds could not be satisfactorily accounted for, stressing that stronger regulation would improve transparency while encouraging greater confidence among development partners.
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa, argued that the legislation would align Nigeria with global best practices in aid management while addressing security concerns linked to unregulated foreign funding.
“Most of the aids coming to so-called NGOs are not subjected to scrutiny. We have seen instances where such arrangements create security concerns because we do not know who is accounting for what. Is it insurgents taking money meant for victims?” Musa queried.
Former Edo State Governor, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, also supported the bill, insisting that every donor fund entering Nigeria should be disclosed, documented and subjected to legislative oversight, while organisations that fail to comply should face stiff sanctions.
President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio endorsed the proposal, warning that foreign assistance operating outside an effective regulatory framework could undermine accountability and pose risks to national security.
Following the debate, the Senate referred the bill to the Committees on National Planning and Economic Development and Finance for further legislative consideration, directing them to submit their report within four weeks.