MacArthur Foundation finds Nigeria lost $200b through theft, inflated contracts, asset disposals
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Nigeria lost $200 billion to endemic corruption and procurement irregularities in the 38 years between 1970 and 2008, the fund siphoned into private pockets through channels that included direct theft, contract inflation, and disposals, according to findings by MacArthur Foundation.
MacArthur Foundation Nigeria Deputy Director, Amina Salihu, disclosed this at a town hall in Abuja convened to address challenges in public procurement processes.
The event, titled “Tackling Procurement Fraud and its Far-Reaching Consequences: A Collective Responsibility”, was organised by Accountability Lab Nigeria, in partnership with the Public and Private Development Centre (PPDC), United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and supported by John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
Attendees included government officials, civil society organisations (CSOs), private sector representatives, and international development partners.
Salihu stressed the importance of ensuring transparency, competition, and integrity in procurement process.
“Whenever you look up these things, you get all kinds of different statistics that trouble you. From 1970 to 2008 over $200 billion was lost in Nigeria through procurement, through inflating contracts, through asset disposals that were not very straightforward, through resources that had been hidden under the table,” she said.
Salihu sought effective regulation and oversight to prevent corruption and ensure that resources are allocated efficiently, highlighting the importance of collaboration between government, civil society, and the private sector to promote transparency and accountability.
She reiterated that corruption in procurement process has severe consequences, including diversion of resources meant for essential public services.
Accountability Lab Country Director Friday Odeh lamented that Nigeria’s public service is plagued by significant lack of accountability, which has led to rampant abuse of procurement processes and blatant misuse of public resources, resulting in substantial financial losses for the country.
UNODC Representative Maximilian Menhard stressed the need to raise awareness about procurement fraud, commit to integrity in public procurements, and agree on relevant follow-up actions.
PPDC Chief Executive Officer Lucy Abagi cited a recent report by her organisation which exposed transparency gaps in Nigeria’s public procurement processes.
She said the report shows that more than 56 per cent of Freedom of Information (FOI) requests for procurement information were not responded to, highlighting the challenges citizens face in accessing such data.
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