CSOs kick, decry excessive regulations 

Spaces for Change (S4C) has called for the immediate jettisoning of the Not-For-Profit Governance Code (NFPGC) 2023 proposed by the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRC).

The Executive Director of S4C, Victoria, Ibezim-Ohaeri, told The Guadian, yesterday, in Lagos, that the new code would add even more regulations to a heavily regulated non-profit sector, focusing on areas like board composition, financial management and stakeholder engagement.

She said: “The introduction of this code is yet another layer of control that is unnecessary and adds nothing new to the sector’s ability to operate optimally and efficiently.

“Non-profits in Nigeria are already answerable to multiple regulatory bodies, including the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Special Control Unit against Money Laundering (SCUML), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Industrial Training Fund (ITF), National Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) and Pension Commission (PenCom).”

These agencies impose various legal and administrative requirements, from compliance with anti-money laundering laws to staff training, social insurance schemes, and more. With these existing regulations, the sector is already struggling. Adding this new code would push it to the breaking point, further crippling organisations that are already navigating countless bureaucratic hurdles.”

S4C explained that non-profits were not against regulation, as “the sector is already one of the most regulated in the country, even among other sensitive sectors requiring that level of regulation,” and piling on more regulations would stifle its ability to function.

Ibezim-Ohaeri, added:  “Overregulation would not strengthen the sector; it would cripple it. We need policies that help non-profits thrive, not ones that push them to the edge of collapse. Communities across Nigeria depend on the work of these organisations and choking them with more rules will only harm those they serve.”