Policy Alert

True development starts at the grassroots. When conversations on quality basic education are made there is always a need to look at the closest tier of government to the people, the local governments.

How well are they delivering on this social need?

Join us tonight for Episode 10 of the radio show as we dive deep into “The role of local government in service delivery: Basic Education.”

Our guest is Davina Inyang Williams, First Vice President, Ibom Elite Leo Club. She will be discussing how we can promote transparency, prioritize our communities, and hold local administrations accountable for the future of Nigerian Children.

Tune into Xl1069.fm

📅 Date: Tonight, July 15th, 2026
⏰ Time: 7:30 PM

There is a particular kind of silence that settles over a room when women have learned, for years, that their opinions on oil and gas governance don't matter. We have watched that silence break.

When the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI) partnered with Policy Alert on Advancing Gender, Innovation and Local Engagement (AGILE) in Nigeria's Host Community Development Trust (HCDTs) Implementation, we set out to change that story for 50 women across Akwa Ibom and Rivers States.

We trained them on the technicalities of the Petroleum Industry Act and Host Community Development Trust governance, and on leadership, advocacy, and the simple, radical idea that they belonged in the room where decisions were made. From that training emerged the State Women Action Group (SWAG), a platform born out of necessity.

Today, these women are bolder, informed participants who understand budgets, governance structures, and their legal entitlements. They challenge exclusion where they once accepted it. They mentor other women who are just beginning to find their voice.

But we didn't stop at people. Through this partnership, Policy Alert also launched the HCDT Index, a yearly accountability tool that measures, among other things, the level of women's inclusion in Host Community Development Trust governance. The Index allows civil society and the public to easily assess and score individual Trusts, turning gender inclusion from a vague aspiration into a measurable, trackable standard.

This is what partnership when done right looks like, investment in people who were always capable, simply waiting to be equipped.

To CFLI and the Canadian High Commission in Nigeria: thank you for believing that gender inclusion is not a side conversation in resource governance, it is the conversation.
Thank you for believing in grassroots-led change, and for standing with communities working toward a more just and inclusive future.

Happy Canada Day! 🇨🇦

Bread for the World Oxfam in Nigeria ActionAid Nigeria

Last week, Policy Alert joined the Ikot Ekpene Local Government Council for a town hall on Governance and Citizens Engagement.
The Chairman of Ikot Ekpene LGA was represented by the Vice Chairman, Elder Victoria. Community members participated thoughtfully, local leadership was present.

What stood out most?
Four persons with disabilities were in the room, including one participant who is deaf and non-verbal, and every single one engaged and contributed fully to the conversation. And that's what inclusive civic space looks like.

Governance works better when everyone has a seat at the table and a voice in the room.

Naijayouthfund