Nigeria's anti-graft commission recovers nearly $500m in a year

Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission says it recovered nearly $500 million in proceeds of crime last year.

The recovery effort is part of the agency’s anti-graft campaign launched by President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

It also seized over 931,000 metric tonnes of petroleum products, 975 properties, and company shares.

In a report published on Monday, the commission said that in addition, it secured more than 4,000 criminal convictions, its highest since it was founded more than two decades ago.

The agency says some of the recovered money has been reinvested in government projects.

Nigeria has struggled for decades with endemic corruption, which many say contributes to widespread poverty.

The country is ranked 140 out of 180 on Transparency International's latest Corruption Perception Index.