A Federal Government audit has uncovered ₦28.1 billion in financial irregularities at Nigeria’s New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), now operating as AUDA-NEPAD, with 31 separate findings recorded against the agency’s 2023 financial operations during the tenure of its then National Coordinator and Chief Executive Officer, Princess Gloria Akobundu.
According to Secrets Reporters, the audit documents show that ₦12.13 billion was flagged over the non-maintenance of proper accounting records and the suppression of documents required by auditors to verify the transactions.
The finding leaves a major accountability question hanging over the agency: where is the documentary trail for ₦12.13 billion in public financial activity?
The auditors found that the accounting records required to properly examine the affected transactions were not maintained as required, while documents necessary for verification were also reportedly suppressed.
Another ₦3.47 billion was flagged over the denial of access to financial records and information requested by the auditors.
According to Secrets Reporters, the two findings together put more than ₦15.6 billion of NEPAD Nigeria’s 2023 financial activity under serious audit scrutiny, with the auditors unable to independently verify the transactions because records were either not properly maintained, allegedly suppressed or access to the relevant information was denied.
This is not simply a case of incomplete paperwork.
Accounting records are the basic evidence required to establish how government money was received, authorised, spent and accounted for. When those records are unavailable or auditors are denied access to them, it becomes difficult to determine what happened to the affected funds.
The audit also found that NEPAD Nigeria failed to submit its audited financial statements for the year under review.
The problem, however, reportedly stretches back several years.
The Auditor-General’s cross-cutting analysis of federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies found that 23 MDAs failed to submit audited financial statements. NEPAD Nigeria reportedly had the worst record among them, with four consecutive years of outstanding audited financial statements.
While 11 other agencies reportedly had only one year outstanding, NEPAD Nigeria had four consecutive years of unsubmitted accounts.
The development represents a prolonged failure in financial reporting and public accountability at an agency whose mandate places it at the centre of Nigeria’s participation in Africa’s development agenda.
Princess Gloria Akobundu served as NEPAD Nigeria’s National Coordinator and Chief Executive Officer during the period covered by the 2023 audit.
The financial and administrative failures identified in the audit therefore occurred during the period her administration was responsible for the agency.
During her tenure, Akobundu represented Nigeria at continental investment forums, infrastructure conferences and other high-level engagements connected with NEPAD’s mandate.
She was succeeded by Jabiru Salisu Abdullahi Tsauri, who was appointed by President Bola Tinubu in December 2024 and remains the agency’s Chief Executive Officer.
The unresolved audit findings now leave the current management with a major responsibility to respond to the queries, produce outstanding records and explain the agency’s prolonged failure to meet financial reporting requirements.
The controversy is particularly significant because NEPAD Nigeria is responsible for supporting Nigeria’s involvement in continental development priorities, including infrastructure, agriculture, investment and economic transformation.
The credibility of such an institution depends heavily on transparent financial management and the ability to account for public resources.
The auditors’ inability to independently verify more than ₦15.6 billion therefore raises serious concerns about the strength of NEPAD Nigeria’s financial controls and record-keeping systems.
The audit findings also raise questions under Nigeria’s public finance laws.
Section 85(2) of the 1999 Constitution provides for the Auditor-General’s access to books, records and other documents relating to public accounts. The ₦3.47 billion finding on denial of access to financial information therefore raises a serious question over compliance with the constitutional audit process.
The Financial Regulations 2009 require government institutions to maintain proper and complete accounting records for their transactions. The ₦12.13 billion finding concerning non-maintenance and suppression of accounting records places NEPAD Nigeria’s compliance with this requirement under serious scrutiny.
The Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007 also requires the preparation and submission of audited financial statements. NEPAD Nigeria’s failure to submit the required statements, coupled with the reported four-year backlog, further compounds the financial accountability concerns.
The figures tell a disturbing story:
₦28.1 billion in audit irregularities.
31 separate audit findings.
₦12.13 billion linked to non-maintenance and suppression of accounting records.
₦3.47 billion linked to denial of access to financial information.
More than ₦15.6 billion caught in missing, suppressed or inaccessible documentation.
Four consecutive years of outstanding audited financial statements.
According to Secrets Reporters, the findings demand answers from those responsible for the agency’s financial administration during the affected period and from the current management responsible for resolving the outstanding audit issues.
The key questions are unavoidable: Why were records covering ₦12.13 billion not properly maintained? Why was access to another ₦3.47 billion in financial information denied? Why did NEPAD Nigeria fail to submit audited financial statements for four consecutive years? Where are the missing records? Who authorised the transactions? And what action has been taken to establish the full financial trail?
The National Assembly, the Auditor-General and other oversight authorities now have grounds to demand detailed explanations and supporting documents from the agency.
Until the outstanding records are produced and the audit queries resolved, the proper accounting for a substantial portion of NEPAD Nigeria’s 2023 financial activities remains unresolved.
According to Secrets Reporters, the revelations are contained in Federal Government audit documents examining the agency’s 2023 financial year.