The Attorney-General of the Federation, AGF, and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami, has revealed that the Nigerian Government has concluded plans to sign a Memorandum of Understanding, MOU, with the Switzerland Government for the release of another USD 321 million recovered from the late Abacha family.
Malami spoke at a preparatory meeting of the Global Forum on Asset Recovery, GFAR, which held in Abuja on the 26th of October.
According to the AGF, a key component of the MOU was focused on meeting Nigeria’s obligation on transparent management of returned assets.
He also confirmed that civil society groups working in the area of asset recovery were involved in the negotiation of the MOU and will be involved in monitoring the assets to ensure that the returned funds are managed in a transparent manner.
The Minister also stated that the government is committed to support the transparent return of assets while urging international partners to improve the procedure for the safe and speedy return of stolen assets as provided under the United Nations Convention Against Corruption, UNCAC.
It will be recalled that the Nigerian government signed unto the Open Government Partnership (OGP) in July 2016 in a National Action Plan, NAP.
Under the OGP, Nigeria committed to strengthen the country’s asset recovery legislations including a non-conviction based confiscation powers and the introduction of unexplained wealth orders.
Furthermore, the Attorney General stated that the Federal Executive Council, FEC, approved a National Anti-Corruption Strategy (NACS) for Nigeria.
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