Economic and Financial Crimes Commission Chairman Ola Olukoyede on Friday praised the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime for placing anti-corruption and illicit financial flows at the centre of its new Country Programme for Nigeria 2026–2030, describing the focus as timely and critical for a country still grappling with the heavy social and economic costs of graft. The remarks were delivered in Abuja at the launch of UNODC’s first-ever country programme for Nigeria.
In his goodwill message, Olukoyede said corruption remains a major threat to both national and global development and argued that sustained action is needed to reverse the damage it has done to Nigeria’s institutions and economy. He said the programme’s emphasis on corruption and illicit financial flows was especially important to the EFCC, given how criminal networks increasingly exploit technology, global financial systems and governance gaps to move illegal proceeds across borders at alarming speed.
The UNODC programme is designed as a five-year strategic framework built around four pillars: justice and the rule of law; security and counter-terrorism; anti-corruption and governance; and the protection of vulnerable groups. UNODC says the initiative is intended to strengthen institutional capacity and help Nigeria respond in a more coordinated way to interconnected threats such as organised crime, terrorism, corruption and illicit financial flows.
Olukoyede also used the occasion to highlight the long-running partnership between the EFCC and UNODC, saying that collaboration had helped strengthen institutional capacity and improve Nigeria’s response to economic and financial crimes. He expressed confidence that the new programme could deliver concrete results because of its emphasis on capacity development, inter-agency cooperation and data-driven strategies, all of which align closely with the commission’s own mandate.
UNODC officials, meanwhile, framed Nigeria as a strategically important country whose size, population and economic influence make it central to wider regional progress. The agency said the country, projected to have around 400 million people by 2050, has the potential to drive positive change across West Africa if its justice and governance institutions are strengthened.
The launch drew senior stakeholders from across Nigeria’s justice and law-enforcement architecture, including representatives of the National Judicial Institute, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Nigeria Police Force, Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation. Their presence underscored the programme’s broader message: that tackling corruption, illicit financial flows and transnational crime will require not only strong agencies, but sustained cooperation across institutions and borders.
