About the Institute

From a research project to a national institute

The Institute evolved from the Policy Analysis and Research Project, and now carries a statutory mandate for the legislature and for democratic institutions across Nigeria.

On 26 January 2018, President Muhammadu Buhari signed the NILS (Amendment) Act, 2017. It renamed the Institute the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies and expanded its mandate to include the provision of capacity development services to other democratic institutions in Nigeria.

Vision & mission

To be the regional hub and top-tier research and training institution that promotes and supports the development of dynamic, effective and accountable legislatures and democratic institutions.

To support and strengthen the legislature and other democratic institutions and actors in Nigeria and beyond, to make informed decisions and effectively discharge their statutory responsibilities — through focused research, training, the sharing of best practices, and the provision of professional support services.

What the Act requires of the Institute

To act as a world-class multi-disciplinary institution providing training, capacity building, research, policy analysis and extension services for the legislature at Federal, State and Local government levels.

To meet a long-felt need to provide legislators and officials with institutionalised opportunities for problem-oriented study and systematic training in legislative institutions, processes and procedures.

To improve the capacity of legislators to sustain and consolidate democratic governance through deliberation and policy formulation.

To improve the technical capacity of legislative staff, committee secretaries and political aides to process appropriation bills and conduct policy oversight of the executive.

To stock and improve the quality of relevant information for members of the national and state assemblies and the general public, through the dissemination of research output and consultative fora.

To monitor and evaluate the implementation of annual budgets, and report to the relevant assemblies.

To conduct short-term training modules for members of the national and state assemblies and their staff.

To promote and disseminate among legislative assemblies in Nigeria the practice of science-based methodologies of law-making.

To design, analyse and evaluate development policies in Nigeria — particularly macro-economic, socio-political and cultural questions.

To support networking arrangements involving parliaments and policy analysis units across the sub-region, in order to share experience.

To prepare such reports and information as may be required by special and standing committees in the course of their work.

To establish and consolidate a database on relevant development policy issues, for use in deliberations on bills and in the drafting of legislation.

To promote best practice in legislative activity in Nigeria and in countries of the sub-region.

To strengthen democratic processes, structures and institutions, and to promote and protect constitutional due process in legislative practice.

To assist the National Assembly and the State Assemblies in their efforts to conceive and draft bills.

Governance

Committees & editorial board

Departments