Attorney General of the Federation Lateef Fagbemi has reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to strengthening anti corruption institutions and deepening collaboration across Africa, telling the 2026 African Union Anti Corruption Day commemoration in Abuja that corruption remains one of the greatest obstacles to the continent’s development and that the fight against it must go beyond prosecution toward building institutions capable of preventing corruption before it happens.
Speaking at an event organised by the Inter Agency Task Team under the theme Scaling Up the Promotion of Integrity and Anti Corruption Actions Across Africa, Fagbemi called the theme timely, noting that while African countries have made real progress strengthening governance systems, corruption has continued evolving in scale and sophistication, demanding stronger institutions, deeper cooperation and greater political will. He described corruption as more than a legal or governance issue, calling it a major development challenge that deprives governments of resources needed for infrastructure, healthcare, education, food security and social protection while weakening democratic institutions, fuelling insecurity and eroding public trust, arguing that integrity remains the antidote to corruption and the foundation of good governance and public confidence.
Fagbemi said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration continues pursuing reforms aimed at strengthening public institutions, improving transparency, enhancing fiscal accountability and reinforcing the justice system, with the Ministry of Justice providing the legal and policy framework to support those reforms while ensuring justice is administered fairly and without fear or favour. He said 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 greater use of technology to reduce opportunities for corruption in public service delivery, and highlighted asset recovery as a key pillar, noting Nigeria has strengthened international cooperation on asset tracing, confiscation, recovery and repatriation, since stolen public assets belong to Nigerians and should be transparently recovered and channelled into projects that directly improve citizens’ welfare. He stressed that international cooperation has 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, and reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption.
Fagbemi maintained that government alone cannot win the anti corruption battle, calling on the private sector to uphold ethical business practices, civil society and the media to keep promoting transparency and accountability, and educational institutions to nurture future generations committed to integrity and responsible citizenship, while warning against politicising anti corruption efforts and insisting the fight must remain anchored on the rule of law, due process, respect for human rights and institutional independence. Head of the Technical Unit on Governance and Anti Corruption Reforms Jane Onwumere said the annual event gives stakeholders a chance to reflect on Africa’s collective commitment to integrity and accountability, urging participants to move beyond policy discussion toward practical solutions, and thanked the European Union and IDEA Rule of Law and Anti Corruption Programme, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the MacArthur Foundation and the Centre for Democracy and Development, alongside the Inter Agency Task Team’s 22 member agencies, for supporting the event.
Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission Chairman Musa Adamu Aliyu, delivering a goodwill message, called for stronger collaboration among anti corruption stakeholders, citing a 2025 Commonwealth Africa Anti Corruption Centre survey across 14 Commonwealth African countries that found 80 percent of respondents believed corruption occurs always or often, while 48 percent said corruption had increased over the previous year, with a lack of integrity ranking among the leading drivers. He said the findings underscore the need to strengthen ethical leadership, public education, institutional cooperation and youth engagement, noting that the ICPC continues pursuing 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 weave anti corruption education into legal training. The IATT, which coordinates Nigeria’s anti corruption and accountability institutions through its secretariat at the Technical Unit on Governance and Anti Corruption Reforms, traced African Anti Corruption Day to the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption, adopted in Maputo in 2003 and entering into force in 2006, after which the AU designated July 11 as the day member states reflect on progress strengthening anti corruption frameworks.
