President Bola Tinubu has directed the establishment of a quarterly policy dialogue forum between the Federal Government and civil society organisations CSOs as part of efforts to strengthen citizens’ participation in governance and improve accountability.
The President announced the initiative during the 2026 National Civil Society Organisations Summit in Abuja, where he emphasised the need for stronger collaboration between government and civil society in shaping policies that affect Nigerians.
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, represented the President at the summit...READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE .
Under the new arrangement, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation is expected to establish a Quarterly Government-Civil Society Policy Dialogue Forum.
The forum is expected to provide a structured avenue for civil society organisations to present evidence-based concerns and recommendations from communities directly to government.
It will also allow citizens’ experiences and grassroots-level information to contribute to the formulation, implementation and evaluation of government policies.
The Presidency said the initiative is intended to strengthen public trust and institutional accountability while creating a more consistent channel of communication between government and citizens.
Tinubu also pledged to expand civic space for social accountability by working more closely with accredited civil society organisations.
The proposed collaboration will focus on areas such as public finance transparency, budget tracking and monitoring of humanitarian and grassroots development programmes.
The President said civil society organisations have historically played an important role in Nigeria’s democratic development by giving vulnerable groups a voice and advocating for human rights, social justice, poverty reduction and anti-corruption measures.
He maintained that sustainable national development would require active participation from government, civil society, the private sector and other stakeholders.
The administration also wants civil society organisations to contribute more actively to the localisation of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Government agencies, development partners, the United Nations system and private-sector stakeholders are expected to support CSOs through capacity building, institutional development and access to technical and financial resources.
The initiative is expected to create more opportunities for community-based organisations to contribute to national development planning and policy implementation.
The President further called on civil society organisations to play a significant role in preparations for the 2027 general elections.
Their responsibilities are expected to include voter education, election monitoring and advocacy for electoral reforms.
Tinubu said credible elections would require cooperation among civil society organisations, law enforcement agencies, the judiciary, the media and citizens.
The government also wants CSOs to contribute to efforts aimed at strengthening democratic participation and public awareness ahead of the elections.
While calling for closer cooperation, the President urged civil society organisations to maintain professionalism, integrity and accountability in their activities.
He said the relationship between government and civil society should be based on constructive engagement rather than suspicion, with both sides working towards addressing the concerns of Nigerians.
The President acknowledged the economic difficulties associated with the reforms introduced by his administration since 2023 but argued that economic growth must ultimately translate into greater social inclusion.
He stressed that government could not achieve that objective alone and therefore called for stronger partnerships with groups representing communities and citizens.
Civil society representatives at the summit also advocated a sustainable partnership involving government, civil society and the private sector.
They proposed a framework that would allow civil society groups to monitor government policies, budgets and development commitments while ensuring that information gathered from communities reaches the appropriate authorities.
The proposed arrangement is expected to provide a more formal mechanism for citizens and community organisations to raise concerns, monitor government interventions and contribute to policy discussions.
The quarterly dialogue forum therefore represents a proposed institutional channel through which government and civil society can engage regularly on national priorities, public accountability and community-level concerns.
The Presidency said the broader objective is to ensure that citizens have a more meaningful role in how policies are designed, implemented and assessed.
