Key facts
- Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has dismissed over 40 employees for corruption and financial misconduct in the last three years.
- EFCC chairman Ola Olukoyede announced that more than five of the dismissed officials are facing prosecution.
- The agency's Department of Internal Affairs has been renamed the Department of Ethics and Integrity as part of reforms.
- A new policy requires officers to declare gifts above a specified threshold.
- Since October 2023, the EFCC has recovered 1.23 trillion naira ($925m) and achieved a conviction rate exceeding 75%.
Nigeria's anti-corruption agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has dismissed over 40 employees for alleged corruption and financial misconduct in the past three years. EFCC chairman Ola Olukoyede announced the figures, stating that more than five of the dismissed officials are currently facing prosecution, with additional case files being prepared.
Olukoyede, who took the helm in October 2023, explained that as part of internal reforms, the EFCC's Department of Internal Affairs has been renamed the Department of Ethics and Integrity. A new policy has also been implemented requiring officers to declare gifts above a certain threshold, including those received from relatives abroad, to combat conflicts of interest.
"You must be sure that your hands are clean. You can't be fighting corruption when your hands are soiled with corrupt practices," Olukoyede stated during a briefing in Abuja.
He further reported that under his leadership, the EFCC has achieved a record recovery of 1.23 trillion naira ($925 million, £683 million) and maintained a conviction rate exceeding 75%. Between October 2023 and July 2026, the commission received 49,673 petitions, investigated 39,615 cases, filed 14,476 cases in court, and secured 10,872 convictions. In the first half of 2026 alone, 1,370 convictions were recorded from 1,889 filings.