ICPC chairman: Illicit financial flows endangering sovereignty of African nations

Musa Aliyu, chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), says illicit financial flows are endangering the sovereignty of African nations.

Aliyu, at the Realnews Magazine’s 13th anniversary lecture series, said trade mispricing, profit shifting, and tax evasion are leading contributors to financial leakages in Africa.

According to NAN, the chairman spoke at the event on Wednesday in Lagos, addressing issues bordering on ‘cybersecurity, illicit financial flow and agenda 2063 in Africa’.

Aliyu said ICPC investigations have exposed instances where multinational companies manipulated trade data and overstated expenses to evade taxes.

He made reference to a major firm that inflated its costs to shrink taxable profits, noting that the lost revenue could have funded the construction of a world-class hospital in Nigeria.

“These practices deny African governments the resources they need to function,” Aliyu said.

“Trade mis-pricing, profit shifting, and tax evasion remain some of the biggest contributors to financial leakages.”

The ICPC boss also lamented the actions of government officials who divert public funds through multiple bank accounts, “often in collaboration with certain financial institutions”.

He said suspicious transactions moving from government accounts into private hands are often ignored by banks that failed to file required reports.

Aliyu warned that Africa’s fast-growing digital adoption — marked by mobile-money usage exceeding 50 percent in several countries — has heightened cybercrime risks, with criminals taking advantage of weak cybersecurity systems.

“Cyber criminals are becoming more sophisticated. Ransomware attacks, cryptocurrency-based laundering, and mobile-money fraud are growing threats,” he said.

According to the ICPC chief, criminal networks often have access to more advanced technology and greater resources than enforcement agencies, making digital crimes increasingly difficult to detect and prosecute, especially once illicit funds move beyond African jurisdictions.

He also said ongoing ICPC investigations that have exposed ghost worker schemes, where corrupt officials manipulate payroll systems to divert unearned salaries.

The ICPC chairman urged the national assembly to pass the long-delayed whistleblower protection bill, stressing that citizens are unlikely to report corruption without adequate protection.

Aliyu called for harmonised cyber laws across the continent, stronger asset recovery frameworks, improved digital infrastructure, and enhanced training for law enforcement.

He also called for full implementation of the Malabo Convention on Cybersecurity and Data Protection, warning that Africa loses over $50 billion annually to illicit financial flows which undermines development and cripples public services.

He described the continued outflow of illegal funds as one of the most devastating drains on Africa’s development capacity.

Aliyu noted that the diverted resources could have financed schools, hospitals, roads, and other vital infrastructure.

He said illicit financial flows — driven by tax evasion, corruption, illegal mining, wildlife trafficking, money laundering, and cyber-enabled crimes — have become a silent crisis endangering the sovereignty of African nations and the prospects of their youth.