The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), has emerged winner of the 2016 Phillips Consulting/WebJurists award for best website and overall social media use among federal parastatals in Nigeria.

The Group General Manager of Public Affairs Division of NNPC, Mr Ndu Ughamadu, made the disclosure in a statement issued in Abuja on Friday.

It said the honour was jointly awarded by Web-Jurists, a website rating outfit and Phillips Consulting, a renowned business and management consulting company.

It quoted Dr Maikanti Baru, NNPC’s Group Managing Director, as saying that it was a testimony to the corporation’s investment in Information and Communication Technology (ICT), over the years.

“It also testifies to NNPC’s commitment to openness, transparency and accountability in its business dealings in recent times.

“Our website as well as other social media platforms have become veritable media where we make public NNPC’s monthly operational and financial reports among others, which underscore our commitment to probity”, Baru stated.

Baru commended the award organisers, saying that NNPC’s doors were opened to meaningful engagement with stakeholders in line with its 12 Business Focus Areas (BUFA) principle of Professionalism and Accountability.

The statement quoted organisers as saying the NNPC website (www.nnpcgroup.com) beat the websites of the Nigerian Communications Commission and the Nigerian Customs Service, which came second and third respectively.

The organisers further stated that their assessment process reviewed the technical aspects, aesthetics, site content, web transaction processing, consumer experience and website performance.

On the social media aspect, the organisers reviewed indices such as increase in brand awareness and loyalty, managing brand reputation, richer customer (visitor) experiences and ability to generate higher leads on conversations.

The statement said the WebJurists had been galvanising innovation and forward-thinking in website service delivery in Nigeria for more than 12 years.

WebJurists award is the result of research conducted into website best practices and effectiveness. It aims to identify the strengths and weaknesses of websites. (NAN)