Reps Unveil Africa’s First Legislative Barometer to Track Lawmakers’ Productivity

By Oluwakemi Kindness

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Abbas Tajudeen, has unveiled Africa’s first National Assembly Deliberative Barometer, a data-driven tool designed to track parliamentary productivity, strengthen accountability, and deepen democratic governance.

The initiative, developed by the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) in collaboration with ERGAF-Africa, was launched on Thursday at the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS), Abuja.

Represented by Rep. Cyril Harthson, Abbas described the barometer as a “historic step toward embedding data and accountability in Nigeria’s legislative process.” He explained that the platform will monitor parliamentary output, evaluate policy outcomes, and raise the standard of lawmaking and oversight.

“The 10th House of Representatives is firmly committed to transparency, openness, and evidence-based lawmaking. Tools such as this compel us to measure our performance and ensure that our work directly reflects the needs and aspirations of Nigerians,” Abbas said.

He stressed that the barometer would empower citizens to engage and hold lawmakers accountable, noting that democracy cannot thrive without an active and informed citizenry.

Representing the technical drivers of the project, Executive Director of Erudite Growth and Advancement Foundation (ERGAF-Africa), Dr. Chinoso Okekere, revealed that the organisation had spent over three years developing a comprehensive framework to assess legislation, using key parliamentary instruments as performance indicators.

He explained that the digital dashboard underpinning the Barometer creates a “legislative legacy,” allowing citizens to verify lawmakers’ contributions and track their alignment with party manifestos and national priorities.

Dr. Okekere also expressed appreciation to members of the National Assembly and civil society partners for their support in bringing the initiative to life.

Delivering the keynote address, NILDS Director General, Prof. Abubakar O. Sulaiman, welcomed the initiative but urged caution against misinterpreting legislative performance metrics.

“Attempting to fragment legislative work into individual outputs may not present a true picture of how the legislature functions,” he said, warning that measuring lawmakers solely by bills or motions could distort collective parliamentary contributions.

Prof. Sulaiman reaffirmed NILDS’s role as a national think tank committed to advancing democratic development through research, training, and data-based policy engagement.

CISLAC Executive Director, Auwal Ibrahim Musa Rafsanjani, challenged members of the 10th Assembly to deepen accountability and inclusive governance. He noted that the credibility of lawmakers should be judged by how responsive they are to citizens’ needs.

“Lawmakers must cultivate a culture of open dialogue, active engagement, and transparency. Only a responsive National Assembly can strengthen trust in Nigeria’s democratic institutions,” Rafsanjani said.

Also speaking, the Country Director of Christian Aid Nigeria, Temitope Fashola, described the barometer as a transformative tool for rebuilding public trust in governance.

“By tracking and showcasing deliberation in plenary, this Barometer strengthens accountability, improves representation, and helps close the gap between political promises and the lived realities of citizens,” he said.

The Deliberative Barometer, pioneered by ERGAF-Africa with the support of Christian Aid and CISLAC, is expected to serve as a benchmark for legislative transparency across the continent.