INTRODUCTION 1. The New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) was adopted at the 37th Summit of the African Union which was held in Lusaka, Zambia, in July 2001.NEPAD is a strategic policy framework for Africa’s renewal and rebirth. It aims “to eradicate poverty and to place countries, individually and collectively, on a path of sustainable growth and development. The core principle of NEPAD is good governance and at the heart of it is the African Peer Review mechanism (APRM), a selfmonitoring instrument voluntarily acceded to by member states of the AU. The overall objective of APRM is to foster the adoption of policies, standards and practices that will lead to political stability in democracy: economic growth, sustainable development and accelerated regional and economic integration. 2. Nigeria acceded to the APRM at the Sixth Summit of the NEPAD Heads of State and Government Implementation Committee which took place in Abuja on 9th March, 2003. Nigeria was peer-reviewed on October 25, 2008 at the 1st Summit of the African Peer Review Forum held in Cotonou, Republic of Benin. An outcome of the peer review exercise is the National Programme of Action which was drawn up to redress observed governance deficiencies. 3. The First Progress Report on the implementation of the National Programme of Action was produced and presented by His Excellency, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan GCFR, President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria at the 14th Summit of Heads of State and Government implementation Committee held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Second Progress 16

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