Nilds Affirms Commitment to Bridge Shortage of Drafters Across Parliaments in Africa

The Director General, National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies, NILDS, Prof. Abubakar O. Sulaiman, has reiterated the commitment of the Institute to bridge the gap in the acute shortage of drafters across Parliaments in Africa.

He said NILDS is working tirelessly in ensuring that the gap is filled through internship in legislative drafting.

Speaking during the inauguration of the Second Batch of the 2022 NILDS Internship Programme in Legislative Drafting, in Abuja on Monday, he admitted that there is shortage of drafters across Parliaments in Africa, and informed that the Chairman of the Institute’s Governing Council and President of the Senate, Senator Ahmad Lawan and the Alternate Chairman Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila are committed to bridge this gap through the internship programme.

He stated that the internship is the first of its kind to be organized by any African Parliament and is purposefully and wholly committed to legislative drafting.

The DG further stated that the reason for this is not far-fetched. “Legislative drafting is a very specialized field that is not taught as a regular course in the mainstream Universities and higher institutions of learning”

Prof. Sulaiman also said the participants will be issued with certificates at the end of the programme as well as letters of recommendations to prospective employers.


He added that the best graduating student would be given the opportunity to assist with some of the drafting assignment of the Institute