TheCable

OrderPaper Nigeria will on February 27 host a panel session on the role of technology as a tool for advancing transparency in the extractive sector.

Oke Epia, executive director of OrderPaper Nigeria, who announced this in a statement, said the panel session tagged: “Technology and Transparency in Extractives”, will come into focus for the first time ever at the Social Media Week, Lagos.

He said the organisation is excited at the opportunity to host the conversation on “deepening Transparency, Accountability and Good Governance (TAGG) in the extractive industries via technology”.

Epia said the recent launch of RemTrack mobile app developed by OrderPaper to track transparency and accountability gaps and their remediation in the petroleum sector is a “fine example of what role technology can play in the sector”.

“This is the first time in the history of the annual SMW Lagos event that a dedicated session on the use of technology as a tool for advancing transparency in the oil and gas sector will be hosted,” the statement read.

“The potentials of technology in advancing the frontiers of citizen engagement, education and understanding in the rather opaque sectors; and ultimately help in efforts to upscale transparency and accountability in their operations is a major inspiration for the session.”

Experts in the extractive sector including petroleum and mining sub-sectors, industry actors, regulators, and civil society organisations are expected to participate in the panel session.

Michael Uzoigwe, reforms advocate and technical lead of the Facility for Oil Sector Transformation (FOSTER);  Tunji Lardner, member of the Nigeria National Resource Charter (NNRC); Amara Nwankpa,  extractive resource enthusiast; and Tengi George-Ikoli, coordinator of the NNRC, are among the panelists.