Nigeria To Launch Web Solution To Help Citizens Keep Track Of All Its Projects

Introducing Eye-Mark

Eye-Mark, a well-known web-based application will soon be introduced to Nigerians. According to Clem Agba, Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, this platform is being established to allow people to report poorly implemented and abandoned projects.

The web application enables a typical Nigerian to assume the role of a monitoring and evaluation official. Uploading a photo of a project allows quick identification of its site, helping the government determine how to keep it accountable.

This is not the first Forum of its kind in Nigeria. BudgIT, a data-driven civic technology company, created and launched Tracka in 2014 to engage Nigerians in government project implementation and service delivery monitoring. Tracka claims to have monitored over 15,000 projects in the 26 states in which it operates.

On the paper, Eye-Mark seems to be a solution for the government to demonstrate public inclusion, openness, and accountability. And, given a few years, it may contribute to the reduction of unfinished projects and unaccounted for expenditure, similar to what Tracka has accomplished.

Albeit commendable, the government's precedents for citizen participation and transparency raise serious questions. Is it fair to assume that Nigerians are not overjoyed at the prospect of this government's plan?

Accountability and Successful Completion of Projects

The Federal Government of Nigeria's large number of unfinished projects is of great concern. As of 2019, this study stated that approximately 56,000 projects had been abandoned in the country's geopolitical zones.

The CIPM - Chartered Institute of Project Management estimated the cost of unfinished projects in the United States to be more than $12 trillion in 2017. The situation is identical at the state level.

With discouraging figures available, a newly launched project may already be stalling. That, however, may not be the case.

In July 2020, the Lagos State Government launched the unified fiber project. However, eyewitnesses report that some of the sites dug to lay colored cables remain uncovered nine months later, with cables left in the opening and no apparent work in progress.

While it is too early to determine if the project has been abandoned, a website like Eye-Mark could house multiple eyewitness accounts.

Concerns Over Public Participation

Due to African governments' history of intimidating the media and civil society, they must do more to earn citizen confidence than Western governments do.

Following the Lekki Tollgate Massacre in Lagos, Nigeria, on October 20, 2020, the government sanctioned several media outlets to use User Generated Content (UGC) in their reporting. The sanction provided some insight into the government's position on citizen journalism.

On the continent, periodic media shutdowns and sanctions are the standards. In 2020 alone, sub-Saharan Africans lost 6,929 hours to government-caused Internet and social media shutdowns of different degrees.

A retired federal government worker said that there’s almost always a repercussion for demanding information or reporting government inconsistencies. And having experienced many government fightbacks, the older generation is less likely to air their grievances.

With anonymity guaranteed, informants face no risks. And this is where digital media platforms — with features that allow anonymous reporting — such as Channels TV iWitness play a role.

However, with the geospatial technology on the Eye-Mark platform’s design, the reporter might not enjoy anonymity.

Although it might seem like an extreme comparison, this could be likened to how African governments handle whistleblowing. According to the Platform for the Protection of Whistleblowers in Africa, only 7 of 54 African countries have whistleblower protection laws. Sadly, Nigeria is not one of them.

If people feel safer expressing themselves on non-governmental platforms or reporting anonymously to media platforms, wouldn’t it be more productive if the government adopted these channels to engage citizens?

While these are only speculations given how the government currently handles accountability and responds to complaints, it remains to be seen how much impact Eye-Mark would have once it launches.