Fagbemi, Bagudu Task Stakeholders on Removing Nigeria from FATF Grey List

•NFIU unveils strategy for securing financial, economic system

Alex Enumah in Abuja

The Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi and his counterpart from the Budget and National Planning Ministry, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, have charged regulators, anti-corruption agencies as well as critical stakeholders in the nation’s financial sector to do everything possible to ensure that Nigeria is removed from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Grey List come May, 2025.

It was their opinion that Nigeria’s exit from the FATF gray list, besides enhancing the country’s economy would attract the much-needed Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) needed for the country’s socioeconomic development.

They spoke yesterday, in Abuja, during the opening of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) Management Retreat, 2024.

The FATF is an independent intergovernmental organisation that promotes policies to protect the global financial system, evaluating jurisdictions based on their Anti-Money Laundering/Counter Financing of Terrorism and Proliferation (AML/CFT/P) standards.

Unfortunately, Nigeria was last year placed on its Grey List due to a rise in capital inflows and deficiencies in combating money laundering, terrorism, and arms financing.

In his goodwill message to participants, Fagbemi commended NFIU’s efforts at combating ML/TF and Proliferation financing, stressing that the efforts of the unit remains very vital in removing Nigeria from the FATF Grey List which he noted will be due in May 2025.

While recognising the importance of the retreat in achieving set goals, he reassured his commitment towards making available the “resources” the NFIU needs in carrying out its task.

On his part, the Minister of Budget and National Planning, pointed out that for Nigeria to achieve the Agenda 2050 goals, it must leverage on good revenue from both the public and private sector.

While lamenting that the nation’s budget of $20 billion was small when compared to some developing countries like Indonesia and that the budget was a far cry from the $100 billion being targeted by the administration, Bagudu observed that the NFIU could help improve the country’s credit rating, which in turn would make revenue available for development.

“Our credit rating should improve better, we have to take measures, set up committed institutions, and believe we should benefit from it to enhance the integrity and soundness of the financial system”, the minister said.

Others who spoke on the occasion included the Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA)Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), the Commandant General of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Abubakar Audi, and the Executive Vice-Chairman National Communication Commission (NCC) Dr Aminu Maida.

They all commended the NFIU for sharing vital intelligence that has enhanced their efforts at combating money laundering, drug trafficking, terrorism financing, arms proliferation amongst others.

Marwa, disclosed that the agency got 76 reports in 2024 which led to significant recoveries of hotels, properties, and bank accounts, as well as several convictions.

Similarly, the NSCDC CG, disclosed that the corps succeeded in arresting over 5000, identified over 300 illegal refineries and convicted over 100 suspects said, “all of these were made possible by Intelligence reports received from the NFIU.

Also speaking, Maida disclosed that over 90 million unidentified numbers were in existence before his appointment, but due to collaboration with NFIU the number has been reduced to 12 million, adding that the target is to get to a zero level.

In a welcome, the Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Financial Intelligence

Unit (NFIU), Hajiya Hafsat Bakari, commended participants for the collective efforts combating the many serious challenges they face in protecting the global economic systems from the threats of money laundering, terrorist financing, proliferation financing of small arms and weapons of mass destruction, violent crimes, and other serious organised crimes.

“On the mandate of the NFIU, I am going to quote the words of Mr. President and Commander-in-Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who in the year 2022 as a presidential candidate said and I quote “We are not here to do what is comfortable. We are here to do what is right for our people and our country. We are here to answer to a greater, higher calling. That calling is the love of Nigeria. We dare not miss this chance because we cannot be sure of another.”

Bakari recalled that the primary role of the unit was to ensure the leveraging of multiple sources of information and data to provide National and International competent authorities with the intelligence they require to investigate crimes and prosecute criminals.

She disclosed that towards this end, the NFIU had taken several steps to ensure the effective protection of national and economic security, adding that the steps have recorded phenomenal achievements since she assumed office.

“Recognising the myriad threats we face, the dynamic nature of the criminal environment, and the vulnerabilities that exist within our domestic context, we developed and implemented a robust and innovative organisational structure which aligns our capacities and resources to the sectors of the economy that are most vulnerable to abuse by money launderers and terrorist financers.

“This allows us to prioritise our response to the highest risk predicate offences in our country and enables us to better serve our stakeholders and partners with timely, credible and actionable intelligence, as well as facilitating more effective cooperation with all of them.

“To support this new structure, we embarked on a strategic re-engagement exercise. Most of the Chief Executive Officers in this room would have at some point in the past few months received a visit from the management of the NFIU.

“The purpose of these visits was to receive direct feedback from the agencies we work with daily and to use these interactions to improve our operations. These engagements have led to the establishment of several joint task forces and inter agency committees to strengthen our mutual cooperation in tackling criminal activity”, she said.