President Muhammadu Buhari has called on heads of anti-corruption agencies in Africa to adopt fresh measures that will prevent corrupt acts through risk assessment strategies.
He gave the advice on Monday at the State House conference centre, Abuja, when he declared open a training programme on Corruption Risk Assessment (CRA) for heads and senior officials of Anti-Corruption Agencies in the African Union.
He explained that the training was organised at the instance of his administration as part of its support for the war against corruption in the continent.
Buhari said it is being facilitated by the Anti-Corruption Academy of Nigeria (ACAN), the research and training arm of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
“The fight against corruption is a battle for the souls of our different countries and it is one that we must win. Since independence, our continent has suffered from the severe consequences of corruption and it is imperative that we take steps to reverse the trend,” he said.
Buhari said when he assumed office in May 2015, “the pervasive nature and devastating impact of corruption on the Nigerian nation had become dysfunctional.”
He said his victory at the polls was a revolt of the people against glaring endemic corruption.
The Nigerian president said he has implemented a lot of strategies to combat corruption, adding that the best way to eliminate the scourge is through prevention.
He said it is the quest to build robust preventive systems that necessitated the initiative, which aims to train leaders of anti-corruption agencies in the African Union to deploy Corruption Risk Assessment Methodology for corruption prevention in their countries.
“Corruption Risk Assessment seeks to identify corruption-prone processes and procedures in organisations and recommend appropriate remedial steps. The methodology places a premium on prevention as an effective complement to enforcement in the war against corruption,” he said.
