By Sumaila Ogbaje
The Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), Mrs Hafsat Bakari, says Nigeria has made significant progress in disrupting terrorism financing and organised crime through stronger financial intelligence and inter-agency collaboration.
Bakari stated this on Friday in Abuja at the validation exercise for Nigeria’s first National Organised Crime Strategy Document.
She said that the country had moved beyond merely meeting international technical standards and was now focused on achieving measurable results in tackling organised crime and terrorism financing.
According to her, criminal enterprises, including terrorism, drug trafficking, cybercrime, human trafficking, kidnapping and illegal mining, are all sustained by illicit financial flows.
She said that tracking the money remained one of the most effective ways of identifying criminal networks, exposing facilitators and preventing attacks.
Bakari disclosed that the NFIU established a dedicated Organised Crime Department in 2024 to trace illicit financial flows within Nigeria and across international financial systems.
She said that intelligence generated by the department had supported investigations by the Nigeria Police Force, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and financial intelligence units in 186 countries.
“We have already taken significant steps. Our response must be more organised than the criminals we are confronting,” she said.
Bakari stressed that no single institution could defeat organised crime alone, urging stronger collaboration among intelligence agencies, regulators, financial institutions and international partners.
Also speaking, Mr Sa’ad Abubakar, National Coordinator, National Cybersecurity Coordination Centre (NCCC), Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), said organised crime had become increasingly interconnected.
Abubakar said cybercrime, drug trafficking, human trafficking, migrant smuggling and illicit financial flows often relied on the same criminal networks, financial systems and governance weaknesses.
According to him, Nigeria’s proposed National Organised Crime Strategy adopts a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach built around prevention, prosecution, protection and partnership.
He said that 13 government agencies contributed to the development of the strategy, demonstrating the importance of coordinated national action against organised crime.
Abubakar added that the strategy clearly assigned institutional responsibilities and measurable performance indicators to ensure effective implementation.
The NCCC coordinator said the document would be submitted to the National Security Adviser and subsequently to the Presidency after validation.
He urged stakeholders to ensure the strategy remained practical, measurable and adaptable to emerging threats, including those driven by artificial intelligence.
The validation exercise was attended by representatives of security and intelligence agencies, development partners, civil society organisations and international partners. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Bayo Sekoni