The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), has advocated for a stronger Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) to unlock Africa’s cross border potentials. The call was made by the Director/Chief Executive Officer of the NFIU, Hafsat Abubakar at the 2025 RegTechAfrica Conference & Awards.
Represented by Dr. Muhammad Jiya, Chief Operating Officer of Emerging Technologies and Innovations at the NFIU), and Vice-Chair of the Information Exchange Working Group of the Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units, the NFIU CEO highlighted the strategic importance of PPPs in securing Africa’s financial systems and unlocking the continent’s economic potential.
Dr Jiya spoke on the theme, “Enhancing Financial Integrity to Unlock Africa’s Cross-Border Potential: He Jiya emphasised the Strategic Role of Public-Private Partnerships, saying that the time has come for Africa to transit from siloed and reactive financial crime controls to intelligence-driven, technology-enabled, and trust-based collaborative frameworks.
“Financial integrity is not merely a regulatory requirement—it is foundational for national security, investor confidence, and seamless trade across African borders. The effective implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) depends significantly on the continent’s ability to curb illicit financial flows, trade-based money laundering, and terrorism financing,” he said.
The NFIU showcased its recent advancements, including the establishment of a dedicated PPP Department and strategic collaborations with FinTech and RegTech actors, both locally and internationally. A notable initiative includes the NFIU’s partnership with RegTech Africa and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to pilot a model for detecting and deterring trade-based financial crimes in West Africa.
Dr. Jiya also highlighted the transformative role of Regulatory Technology (RegTech) in strengthening compliance frameworks, facilitating real-time risk monitoring, enabling blockchain analytics, and supporting data privacy in financial intelligence operations.
He concluded by calling on governments to institutionalize PPP frameworks within their national AML/CFT/CPF regimes, urging the private sector to move beyond compliance and co-develop solutions, and encouraging regional bodies to harmonize standards and regulatory approaches for effective cross-border cooperation.
The presentation reinforced the NFIU’s leadership in fostering collaborative approaches to combating financial crimes, protecting the integrity of Nigeria’s financial system, and contributing to Africa’s long-term economic growth.
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