By Vivian Emoni
The Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ), in collaboration with government agencies, has unveiled a report assessing Nigeria’s legal and institutional framework for tackling illicit financial flows.
The Executive Director of ANEEJ, Mr David Ugolor, said this at the public presentation and validation of a research report on the assessment of Nigeria’s legal and institutional framework for addressing illicit financial flows (IFFs), on Thursday in Abuja.
Ugolor said the collaboration was aimed at identifying reforms that would strengthen accountability, transparency and citizen participation.
He said the presentation was held under a project designed to strengthen civil society organisations and media capacity to combat illicit financial flows in Nigeria.
According to him, the initiative, supported by the European Union (EU), is necessary as illicit financial flows continue to deprive Nigeria of resources needed for development, healthcare, education and poverty reduction.
He added that the trend also weakened governance systems and reduced government capacity to mobilise domestic resources for national development.
“Nigeria has established laws and institutions to tackle corruption and money laundering. The initiative has also involved government agencies such as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
“Also, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), among other relevant agencies, to ensure the practice is effectively addressed,” he said.
The executive director thanked government agencies, the EU and other partners for their commitment to ensuring the issue was properly tackled.
Also speaking, Prof. Abdullahi Shehu, representative of the SecFin Africa Programme, said the organisation had consistently supported anti-corruption initiatives and maintained strong collaboration with the media.
Shehu said the EU was implementing technical assistance in West Africa through the SecFin Project to combat money laundering and terrorism financing in Nigeria.
According to him, the project, coordinated from Dakar, focuses on supporting Nigerian institutions in tackling money laundering, terrorism financing and proliferation financing through strategic interventions.
“The project’s major partner in Nigeria is the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit. It is central to implementing programmes across regulatory, compliance and law enforcement agencies.
“The report on illicit financial flows will aid civil society engagement, and I urge institutions including the EFCC and ICPC to study its recommendations,” he said.
Speaking also, the Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Mr Musa Adar, said the organisation’s partnership with ANEEJ had produced important reports that strengthened transparency and accountability in the extractive sector.
Adar, represented by Mr Godwin Okpene, Deputy Director, Policy Planning and Strategy, said the collaboration had advanced the implementation of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative and improved transparency reforms in Nigeria.
He noted that NEITI and ANEEJ had recently worked on illicit financial flows in the extractive sector, especially mining, to improve oversight and prevent revenue leakages.
According to him, Nigeria has made progress in legal reforms, particularly in contract transparency and beneficial ownership disclosure, aimed at promoting openness in the extractive industry.
Also, Mr Olanipekun Olukoyede, the Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), commended the support of the EU through the SecFin Africa Programme for the initiative.
Olukoyede said continued commitment to promoting transparency, accountability and inclusive governance in Nigeria and across Africa would strengthen the fight against financial crimes.
He was represented by Mrs Wananje Gwana, Assistant Commander of the EFCC.
He urged participants to engage constructively and strategically.
“Let us move beyond diagnosis toward practical solutions that can strengthen Nigeria’s response to illicit financial flows and promote accountable governance,” he said. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
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