CSOs urges senate to withdraw Foreign Aid Bill, decry harsh sanctions

No fewer than 30 civil society organisations have urged the Senate to withdraw the proposed Foreign Aid (Regulation, Transparency and Disclosure) Bill, 2026, describing its sanctions against non-governmental organisations as excessive.

The groups which include Yiaga Africa, Accountability Lab Nigeria, Gatefield, BudgIT, SERAP, CLEEN Foundation and Enough is Enough Nigeria, made the demand at a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday.

Blueprint reports that the bill, sponsored by Senator Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo, seeks to regulate and monitor the operations and funding streams of non-governmental organisations and civil society organisations.

It has passed first and second readings and was referred to the Senate Committee on Civil Society and Development Partners for further legislative consideration.

The CSOs said its revival and progression through the Senate had raised concerns over the future of civic activities and independent organisations in the country.

Reading the joint statement, Country Director of Accountability Lab Nigeria, Odeh Friday, said the bill would impose unnecessary restrictions on organisations providing support to Nigerians.

“At a time when everyday Nigerians are pulling together to survive unprecedented economic hardship and inflation, the National Assembly is moving aggressively to criminalise local and global solidarity,” Odeh said.

Odeh said the proposed law lacked adequate safeguards against abuse of regulatory powers.

“There are no safeguards written into the statute to narrow regulatory powers, judicial appeal, no political-priority test and no discretionary suspension of legitimate civic organisations,” he stated.

He also questioned a provision requiring foreign aid to receive official approval and align with government objectives.

“We wonder what this means for essential work that demands government accountability or investigates high-profile corruption,” Odeh said.

The groups also faulted the proposed sanctions, particularly provisions that could lead to the suspension or revocation of an organisation’s operational licence.

They argued that Nigerian NGOs generally operate through registration with the Corporate Affairs Commission rather than conventional licences.

According to them, revocation could effectively result in the deregistration of an organisation and prevent it from continuing its activities.

The CSOs also criticised what they described as selective transparency requirements targeting foreign-funded organisations.

“The central defect in SB. 1034 is not that it demands transparency, but it demands transparency selectively,” the statement read.

The organisations argued that equivalent disclosure requirements should cover domestic political donations, foundations linked to public office holders and organisations associated with political figures.

They further questioned whether a N5m grant to a community organisation represented the major corruption and election-finance risk confronting Nigeria.

Also speaking, Strategic Lead, Democracy, Rights and Public Sector at Gatefield, Abdulrahman Adebayo, said existing government mechanisms could be strengthened instead of establishing another regulatory framework.

Adebayo said the government had committed to recording development cooperation flows on the national budget, with quarterly breakdowns, by the 2027 fiscal cycle.

He said expanding the existing dashboard and linking it to the budget process would improve transparency without placing independent organisations under a punitive commission.

“The proposed National Foreign Aid Register fills no regulatory vacuum,” Adebayo said.

“On the public side, it duplicates the Dashboard, and on the recipient side, it duplicates CAMA, the FRC Act and the SCUML regime.”

He noted that government agencies already possessed enforcement powers under existing laws.

Adebayo cited Section 839 of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, which empowers the CAC to suspend trustees and appoint interim managers in specified circumstances.

He also cited Section 56 of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, which provides powers concerning the registration of non-profit organisations under specified circumstances.

Executive Director of DigiCivic Initiative, Mojirayo Ogunlana, said the proposed penalties were another major concern.

She said individuals could face up to five years in prison and a minimum fine of N5m for failure to register, inaccurate disclosure or obstruction of the proposed commission.

“Organisations face a minimum fine of N20m and the suspension or revocation of their operational licence,” Ogunlana said.

The CSOs called on the Senate to stop further consideration of the bill and withdraw it from the legislative process.

They also urged Nigerians, religious leaders, diaspora groups, student unions and market associations to oppose what they described as measures capable of restricting civic participation.