Group work and presentations enabled participants to share practical solutions to compliance barriers.
By TheInvestigator
In a concerted effort to boost civil society operations and safeguard civic space, over 20 civil society actors drawn from various organisations across Cross River State have undergone a two-day intensive training on regulatory compliance. The event, tagged “Regulatory Compliance Training for Members of Community of Practice (CoP) on Civic Space Strengthening in Cross River State,” held in Calabar, was organised by Global Rights with funding support from the European Union.
The programme formed part of the “Strengthening a Community of Practice to Improve the CSO Regulatory Environment in Nigeria” initiative, aimed at deepening civic space engagement through improved regulatory literacy, especially in the areas of taxation, incorporation, pension, and anti-money laundering.
Damilola Decker, Programme Officer for Civic Space Strengthening at Global Rights, welcomed participants and introduced the programme’s objectives. She was joined by Global Rights Executive Director Abiodun Baiyewu and Jeff Mangwet Chima, a member of the CoP National Steering Committee, who emphasized the need for unity and regulatory adherence among CSOs to withstand increasing restrictions.
Key sessions on the first day included lectures on Companies and Allied Matters delivered by Prof. Adekunle Adedeji, SAN, and Salisu Abubakar from the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). Participants also received insights on Nonprofit Taxation from a team of legal and tax professionals, including representatives of the Nigeria Revenue Service and the Cross River State Internal Revenue Service.
Day Two commenced with a session on Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT), led by Prof. Adedeji, Amarachi Nnamdi-Nkume, and Abubakar Nafi’u of SCUML (Special Control Unit Against Money Laundering). The training also covered pension management for nonprofit staff and regulatory challenges faced by CSOs.
Group work and presentations enabled participants to share practical solutions to compliance barriers. In her closing remarks, Edosa Ovaive, Programme Manager at Global Rights, urged CSOs to remain vigilant and proactive. Damilola facilitated the post-evaluation session, while James Ibor, a CoP National Steering Committee member, gave the final vote of thanks.
