USAID/OTI Nigeria Program Description
NIGERIA PROGRAM: FY2001 Budget - $6,000,000
The Office of Transition Initiative's (OTI) principal mission in Nigeria is to sustain the current transition toward national reconciliation and democracy. Since launching the program in May 1999, OTI has provided $12.6 million in assistance to Nigeria. The majority of OTI's funds are grants to civil society groups, local government, community and media organizations whose activities reflect this mission. A portion was used to finance technical support provided by U.S. based organizations.
OTI's activities engage high-level decision-makers, as well as the grassroots level of society, and shift to reflect changing needs in the country. Currently, OTI's activities are targeted on the following areas:
- Conflict Management: OTI sponsored a nationwide training program with special emphasis on the North, the Niger Delta and other conflict-prone areas. It includes training of trainers, a broad-based conflict assessment review, and strengthening local groups involved in conflict management. OTI continues to provide conflict management programs, responding to requests from representatives of all levels of Nigerian government, who recognized OTI as a resource during an earlier OTI/DG-sponsored good governance training. OTI supports the only nationwide Nigerian group engaged in conflict management.
- Civilian-Military Relations / Police Reform: OTI was instrumental in jump-starting comprehensive reform efforts in civilian-military relations and is now focusing its efforts on strengthening relations at the local level. In addition, OTI is working with other U.S. government agencies and international donors to help the Government of Nigeria develop a strategy for reforming the civilian police force, an important step in enhancing citizen security.
- Media/Civil Society Support: OTI focuses resources on those local civil society groups who are mobilized to engage the Nigerian populace on the aforementioned key transition issues as well as on anti-corruption and good governance. OTI also supports activities that enhance media coverage of these issues by promoting an ethnical, balanced and responsive media and by providing training and technical assistance. OTI's local partners are encouraged to use the media to enhance public awareness through programming that helps the public critically analyze issues and engage in dialogue with their elected officials.
OTI's Nigeria program has closed its offices in Abuja, Port Harcourt and Kano and is currently located in Lagos. OTI works in conjunction with Louis Berger International. Outside of USAID, key partnerships in the U.S. Government include the Department of State, the Department of Justice, the Department of Energy, and the Department of Defense.
OTI is scheduled to exit Nigeria in January 2002, handing off activities to USAID/Nigeria.
|
