The Chartered Institute of Directors Nigeria (CIoD) has warned about the quality of decisions taken in Nigeria’s boardrooms, saying they are increasingly becoming a critical determinant of corporate survival, investor confidence and the economy’s capacity to attract and retain long-term capital.

The institute said weak board oversight, poor strategic judgement and inadequate risk management could expose companies to financial losses, destroy shareholder value, trigger corporate distress and ultimately undermine jobs, investment and economic activity.

Against this backdrop, the institute has launched the Chartered Director Certification Programme (CDCP), a new professional pathway designed to raise the competence and accountability of directors and senior executives responsible for major corporate decisions.

Unveiling the programme in Lagos, President and Chairman of Council, CIoD Nigeria, Adetunji Oyebanji, said the increasing complexity of the business environment has made professional competence at board level more critical than ever.

“Experience remains important, but experience alone is no longer sufficient. Directors require a structured pathway through which their knowledge can be developed, their competence validated and their professional standards continually strengthened,” he said.

He said the institute’s intervention comes at a time businesses are contending with economic volatility, technological disruption, cybersecurity risks, regulatory changes, sustainability pressures and growing demands for corporate accountability.

He argued that the consequences of boardroom failures extend beyond individual companies because poorly governed businesses can lose capital, cut investment, shed jobs and weaken confidence in the wider business environment.

For investors, Oyebanji said the quality of corporate governance is increasingly part of the investment decision itself, particularly where businesses require patient and long-term capital, noting that stronger boards could therefore improve assurance that capital will be properly deployed, risks adequately identified and management held accountable for performance.

The CIoD boss said the CDCP was designed to address the challenge by moving directorship from a largely experience-based pathway towards demonstrated and continuously validated competence.

Chairman, Director Development and Certification Committee, Foluso Olaniyan, said the programme was structured to take candidates beyond professional experience to examined competence.

She said candidates will be assessed in areas including corporate governance, board roles and responsibilities, strategic leadership and decision-making, financial stewardship, risk management and internal control, board dynamics and effectiveness, sustainability and corporate social responsibility, as well as personal leadership development.

She said the programme is also designed to test how candidates apply knowledge, exercise judgement and respond to the consequences of board-level decisions—areas the institute considers central to effective corporate oversight.

Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of CIoD Nigeria, Dr Taiwo Nolas-Alausa, said the ultimate measure of the new designation would not be the prestige attached to it but the quality of decisions made by those who earn it.

He said the certification would be anchored on four safeguards—relevance, rigour, fairness and continuing responsibility—to ensure that the qualification remains connected to actual board responsibilities and that holders maintain ethical and professional standards.