Anti-Corruption Academy of Nigeria, experts finalize deliverables, strategies on anti-corruption norms for behaviour change

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

From left: Former Provost of ACAN, Professor Sola Akinrinnade, his successor, Professor Olatunde Babawale and Secretary of ICPC, Professor Musa Usman Abubakar, at the meeting of experts

By Anthony Maliki, Samuel Torlumun, Abuja

A workable critical framework by experts to finalize training deliverable and draft strategies for norm and behavior change components of anti-corruption in Nigeria is being worked out through the Anti-Corruption Academy of Nigeria (ACAN).

Based in a serene environment in Keffi, Nasarawa State, ACAN is the training arm of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Commission (ICPC).

At a meeting in Abuja on Wednesday, the experts are to brainstorm to evolve a clean copy of norms and behavour change elements for the implementation of National Ethics and Integrity Policy (NEIP).

To set the ball rolling, the Provost of ACAN, Professor Olatunde Babawale pointed out that the project aims to translate the values prescribed by NEIP into anti-corruption behaviour.

He said it is in the context that the project will identify the ethics prescribed by NEIP and propose strategies that beneficiaries can adopt to promote anti-corruption behaviour to reflect its ethics and values.

According to him, experts at an earlier meeting had considered many of the salient issues on the project and the present meeting is to finalise the training deliverables for the beneficiary stakeholders and conclude on strategies that beneficiaries will adopt to actualize the behaviour change component of NEIP.

A group photograph of experts and other stakeholders who attended the meeting

Professor Babawale noted that “interventions such as the one engendered by this project will help give life to the NEIP and ensure that it is not just another document gathering dust on the shelves of the project beneficiaries.”

With support of MacArthur Foundation, the Provost stressed, ACAN has mainstreamed norms and behaviour change into its training programmes and curricula.

Besides, he said, as part of the new approach, ACAN is working on a project to help stakeholders to implement NEIP in the context of behaviour change, a policy adopted by the Federal Executive Council in 2020.

The Country Director, MacArthur Foundation, Dr. Kole Shettima revealed some areas of support that would help in behaviour change of anti-corruption crusade in Nigeria.

They include investigative journalism not only in English but other local languages especially using media at the grassroots, criminal justice system, support civil society organisations to promote accountability, working with faith-based organisations and support to entertainment industry showing role models.

Other experts that spoke at the occasion included Professor Etannibi Alemika, a Professor of Criminology and Sociology of Law, Secretary of ICPC, Professor Musa Usman Abubakar, former Provost of ACAN, Professor Sola Akinrinnade, Professor Isaac Obasi of Department of Public Administration, University of Abuja and Alhaji Ashiru Baba, Director, Public Enlightenment and Education Department, ICPC, among others.