ECOWAS anti-graft agencies unite against cross-border corruption

West African anti-corruption agencies are now actively implementing a regional protocol designed to bolster investigations and asset recovery across the sub-region. Ola Olukoyede, Chairman of Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and President of the Network of National Anti-Corruption Institutions in West Africa (NACIWA), announced the operationalization of the protocol at a leadership conference in Abuja.

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We have a protocol which we drafted and adopted during our Annual General Assembly last year. We have begun to operationalise that protocol. That protocol allows for exchange of information, cross-border investigation and cross-border support, and we have operationalised that.

The protocol, adopted in October last year, enables member countries to share intelligence, conduct joint investigations, and provide mutual support in tracing illicit financial flows and recovering stolen assets. Olukoyede stated that the framework has already yielded results, with agencies exchanging information and assisting each other in tracing financial crimes.

"We have had cases where we exchanged information with our counterparts from other West African countries, and it is actually working," Olukoyede said. "We have had cause to assist one another to trace illicit financial flows and assets to our various countries, and they have been quite supportive."

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We have had cases where we exchanged information with our counterparts from other West African countries, and it is actually working. We have had cause to assist one another to trace illicit financial flows and assets to our various countries, and they have been quite supportive.

Nigeria is spearheading these regional efforts, leveraging its position as the current president of the West African anti-corruption network and its strategic role within ECOWAS. The conference aims to further deepen collaboration, particularly in combating terrorism financing and illicit financial flows through coordinated intelligence sharing. Olukoyede highlighted the evolving nature of graft, noting that criminal networks increasingly operate across borders, moving illicit funds through multiple jurisdictions.

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Each country is gaining from that synergy and cooperation.