The Nigeria Police Force has commenced a three-day training workshop aimed at equipping its frontline officers and prosecutors with the skills to tackle money laundering and terrorism financing.
The event, themed “Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing for Frontline Officers and Prosecutors,” is taking place at the Goodluck Ebele Jonathan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, Force Headquarters, Abuja, and runs from June 18 to 20, 2025.
This initiative was disclosed in a statement issued by the Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, on Wednesday.
At the opening ceremony, the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, who was represented by Deputy Inspector-General of Police (Training and Development), Frank Mba, reaffirmed the Police Force’s commitment to addressing financial crimes and related threats. He emphasized the importance of the workshop, especially in light of Nigeria’s current status on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list.
The workshop is being held in collaboration with the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) and the Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption (ROLAC) Programme. It brought together representatives from various agencies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS). Also present were senior officers of the Police Force and top government officials.
Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, represented by Mrs Jamila Akaaga Ade, delivered the keynote address. He described financial crimes as an escalating global concern and urged agencies to adopt modern investigative methods and embrace coordinated strategies. He warned that conventional tools are no longer adequate to meet the scale and complexity of emerging threats.
Fagbemi further advised participants to take full advantage of the workshop to sharpen their professional skills. He called for greater cooperation among law enforcement bodies and discouraged inter-agency rivalry, which he said hampers progress.
Egbetokun highlighted legislative steps already taken to combat financial crimes, citing the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2022 and the Terrorism (Prevention) Act, 2022. He also pointed to the creation of the Police Counter-Terrorism Unit in 2007 as part of sustained efforts to respond to security challenges.
The Inspector-General called for closer collaboration among the Police, Department of State Services (DSS), EFCC, and NFIU to achieve better results in disrupting criminal networks.
He thanked President Bola Tinubu and the Federal Government for their backing and reaffirmed the Force’s determination to help restore Nigeria’s standing in the international financial system.
