Nigeria will receive the sum of $321m stolen by the family of late Head of State, General Sani Abacha -GON
Nigeria will receive the sum of $321m stolen by the family of late Head of State, General Sani Abacha -GON
The modalities for the return of the stolen funds are set out in the MOU that was signed by the three parties at GFAR2017 on December 4, 2017. The return of the looted funds is in line with Switzerland’s policy of returning illegally-acquired assetsNigeria will receive the sum of $321m stolen by the family of late Head of State, General Sani Abacha, following the signing of a tripartite memorandum of understanding (MOU) by Attorney General @AbubakMalamiSAN with Switzerland and the @WorldBank at #GFAR2017 #NigeriaGFAR— Govt of Nigeria (@AsoRock) December 5, 2017
The MOU stipulates that the restitution of funds will take place within the framework of a project known as the National Social Investment Program that will strengthen social security for the poor in Nigeria.
The MOU also regulates the disbursement of restituted funds in tranches and sets out concrete measures to be taken in the event of misuse or corruption, as well as allows the involvement of civil society in the monitoring of the restitution process.
These funds being returned to Nigeria - initially frozen in Luxembourg - were confiscated by Switzerland as part of criminal proceedings brought by the public prosecutor's office of Geneva against Abacha in December 2014.
Nigeria will use the opportunity of the GFAR2017 meeting at the headquarters of IFC in Washington, DC to negotiate the return of other assets and also engage in bilateral meetings with several other countries.
The Nigerian delegation to GFAR2017 includes AbubakMalamiSAN, Attorney General & Min of Justice, JulietIbekaku, Sp Asst to the President on Justice Reform, & Coordinator, ogpnigeria; as well as civil society organizations represented by Revd David Ugolor, ED, aneejnigeria
Join the conversation