.IATT seeks stronger collaboration to scale up anti-Corruption efforts across Africa
Bennett Oghifo
Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, has reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to strengthening anti-corruption institutions, promoting integrity and deepening collaboration across Africa, insisting that corruption remains one of the greatest obstacles to the continent’s development and prosperity.
Also, the Inter-Agency Task Team (IATT) has called for stronger collaboration among governments, anti-corruption institutions, development partners, civil society organisations, the private sector and citizens to deepen integrity and strengthen accountability systems across Africa.
Speaking at the 2026 African Union Anti-Corruption Day commemoration held at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja, Fagbemi said the fight against corruption must go beyond prosecution to building resilient institutions capable of preventing corruption before it occurs.
The event, organised by the Inter-Agency Task Team (IATT), brought together heads of anti-corruption agencies, development partners, civil society organisations, the private sector, academia, youth groups and the media under the theme, ‘Scaling Up the Promotion of Integrity and Anti-Corruption Actions Across Africa’.
Fagbemi described the theme as timely, noting that although African countries had recorded significant progress in strengthening governance systems, corruption had continued to evolve in scale and sophistication, requiring stronger institutions, enhanced cooperation and greater political will.
According to him, corruption is not merely a legal or governance issue but a major development challenge that deprives governments of resources needed for infrastructure, healthcare, education, food security and social protection while also weakening democratic institutions, fuelling insecurity and eroding public trust.
He stressed that integrity remains the antidote to corruption, describing it as the foundation of good governance and public confidence in government.
The Attorney General said the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had continued to pursue reforms aimed at strengthening public institutions, improving transparency, enhancing fiscal accountability and reinforcing the administration of justice.
He explained that the Federal Ministry of Justice had continued to provide the legal and policy framework required to support these reforms while ensuring justice was administered fairly and without fear or favour.
Fagbemi noted that Nigeria’s anti-corruption strategy places equal emphasis on prevention and enforcement through stronger legal frameworks, improved inter-agency collaboration, modernised criminal justice administration and the deployment of technology to reduce opportunities for corruption in public service delivery.
He also highlighted asset recovery as a key pillar of the country’s anti-corruption policy, stating that Nigeria had strengthened international cooperation in asset tracing, confiscation, recovery and repatriation of proceeds of crime.
According to him, stolen public assets belong to Nigerians and should be transparently recovered and channelled into projects that directly improve citizens’ welfare.
The minister further stressed that international cooperation had become indispensable in combating illicit financial flows, money laundering and transnational organised crime, urging African countries to strengthen mutual legal assistance, intelligence sharing and joint investigations to deny criminals safe havens for illicit wealth.
He reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to implementing the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption while working with other African countries to strengthen regional institutions against emerging corruption risks.
Fagbemi, however, maintained that governments alone could not win the anti-corruption battle, calling on the private sector to uphold ethical business practices and corporate governance while urging civil society organisations and the media to sustain their roles in promoting transparency, accountability and citizen participation.
He also underscored the importance of educational institutions in nurturing future generations committed to integrity, ethical leadership and responsible citizenship.
Warning against politicising anti-corruption efforts, the Attorney-General insisted that the fight must remain firmly anchored on the rule of law, due process, respect for human rights and institutional independence.
Earlier, Head of the Technical Unit on Governance and Anti-Corruption Reforms (TUGAR), Mrs. Jane Onwumere, said the annual event provided an opportunity for stakeholders to reflect on Africa’s collective commitment to integrity and accountability.
She urged participants to move beyond policy discussions towards practical solutions capable of strengthening transparency, accountability and effective governance across the continent.
Onwumere commended the European Union/IDEA Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption (RoLAC II) Programme, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the MacArthur Foundation and the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) for supporting the event, alongside the 22 member agencies of the Inter-Agency Task Team.
She expressed appreciation to the development partners and the 22 member agencies of the IATT for their sustained cooperation, noting that inter-agency collaboration remains critical to advancing Nigeria’s anti-corruption agenda.
She called on Nigerians to embrace the values of integrity, transparency and accountability and to support initiatives aimed at strengthening anti-corruption efforts, expressing confidence that collective action would enable Nigeria to contribute meaningfully to Africa’s vision of a continent founded on good governance, integrity and sustainable development.
Delivering a goodwill message, Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Dr. Musa Adamu Aliyu, SAN, called for stronger collaboration among anti-corruption stakeholders, citing findings from the 2025 Commonwealth Africa Anti-Corruption Centre (CAACC) survey.
According to him, the study, conducted across 14 Commonwealth African countries, found that 80 per cent of respondents believed corruption occurred always or often, while 48 per cent said corruption had increased within the previous year. He added that lack of integrity ranked among the leading drivers of corruption on the continent.
Aliyu said the findings underscored the need to strengthen ethical leadership, public education, institutional cooperation and youth engagement to build resilient anti-corruption systems.
He noted that the ICPC had continued to pursue corruption prevention, enforcement and public education through integrity clubs in schools, anti-corruption lectures for National Youth Service Corps members and partnerships with universities and the Nigerian Law School to integrate anti-corruption education into legal training.
The IATT, which serves as Nigeria’s coordinating platform for anti-corruption and accountability institutions with TUGAR as its secretariat, said this year’s commemoration sought to deepen collaboration among governments, development partners and citizens in advancing integrity, accountability and sustainable development across Africa.
The IATT, in a media brief, explained that it serves as the coordinating forum for agencies with anti-corruption and accountability mandates in Nigeria, with its secretariat domiciled in the Technical Unit on Governance and Anti-Corruption Reforms.
The task team recalled that during an inter-agency retreat held in Kaduna in 2009, member institutions adopted a Statement of Commitment to jointly and systematically address critical issues within Nigeria’s anti-corruption agenda through collaborative initiatives designed to foster institutional synergy, raise public awareness and mobilise citizens in the fight against corruption.
The body also traced the significance of African Anti-Corruption Day to the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption, adopted in Maputo, Mozambique, in 2003 and which entered into force in 2006. The African Union subsequently designated July 11 as African Anti-Corruption Day to encourage member states to reflect on progress made in strengthening anti-corruption frameworks through legal, institutional and policy reforms.
The IATT stated that this year’s seminar featured expert paper presentations and panel discussions on integrity, transparency, accountability and emerging corruption risks, while also identifying best practices from across Africa and practical recommendations for strengthening governance institutions.
The 2026 commemoration was organised in collaboration with the European Union/IDEA Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption (RoLAC II) Programme, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and the MacArthur Foundation/Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) under the NACASIP II initiative.
