On October 23, 2014, Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division of the United States Department of Justice, Leslie Caldwell, described the fight against corruption as “a necessary enforcement action to protect our own national security interests and the ability of our U.S. companies to compete on a global scale.” These comments not only apply
Anti-Corruption
Recovering Abacha’s Billions
In a recent meeting with the leadership of the World Bank Group, African Finance Ministers requested assistance in supporting the battle to fight what is now estimated to be over $50 billion of illicit financial flows out of Africa. The ongoing global efforts to recover the billions of dollars allegedly siphoned by the late Nigerian…
Voluntary Transparency Measures in the Extractive Industry
In many African countries, the potential of the extractive industry to develop local economies has yet to be fully realized, monitored, or regulated. Although considerable attention has been paid to foreign government regulatory measures such as the European Union Accounting and Transparency Directives and Sections 1502 and 1504 of the U.S. Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform…
Maintaining the Independence and Integrity of Central Banks
Despite various countries making great strides forward in responsible fiscal management, recent events have reignited concerns about the integrity and independence of central banks in Africa. Specifically, in the past few months, one central bank governor has been suspended, another has been threatened with arrest, and a third has abruptly resigned.
Nigeria. Perhaps the most…