AGF Seeks More Inter-Agency Collaboration In Fight Against Cybercrime

In a collective effort towards fighting cybercrime and other related offences in the country, the Attorney General of the Federation AGF, and Minister of Justice Prince Abdulateef Fagbemi has reiterated commitment through inter-agency collaboration to combat the menace.

The AGF who made the call at a Workshop in Abuja with the Theme: “National Cascade Train the Trainer Leadership Program In Cybercrime Prevention Under The Cybersecurity Ideas Incubator for Joint Case Team on Cybercrime In Nigeria” said it was targeted at deepening inter-agency collaboration and building capacity through the Joint Case Team On Cybercrime, JCTC.

Fagbemi, who was represented by the Director, Administration of Criminal Justice and Reforms Department of the Ministry, Mrs Leticia Ayoola-Daniels said the forum was a deliberate step towards strengthening institutional capacity within the cyber justice ecosystem.

She explained that the Commonwealth Secretariat for the Cyber Fellowship program was established to build a network of experts from Africa and the Caribbean to encourage cooperation, policy development and capacity building across the two regions which has translated into tangible benefits through the Ideas Incubator program for the wider inter-agency team.

“The Commonwealth Secretariat and UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) are long-standing partners of the JCTC, particularly recounting the support for the Foundation Laying Retreat which preceded the formal launch and the signing of the Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding in April 2025.”

“It is no longer news that cybercrimes are a global threat and increasingly complex at that, with losses estimated in trillions of dollars annually ranging from online fraud schemes, Identity theft, cryptocurrency-enabled laundering being the reason we must continue to test our enforcement architecture.”

“It is imperative to note that enforcement alone cannot address the challenge, prevention must be structured, consistent capacity with sustainable prevention impact and adoption of preventive measure in global efforts against cybercrimes which endorses education, replication and leadership leading to investigation and prosecution for meaningful progress and this only gets better when we sustain the collaboration on a united front.

On her part, Head, Joint Case Team on Cybercrime JCTC, and Commonwealth Africa Cyber Fellow, Jemila Akaaga said the work being done through the Cyber Fellowship is invaluable and so is the exchange within the network which in her words has recorded some wins with the most recent being the endorsement of the Africa Cyber Toolkit in Fiji by the Commonwealth Law Ministers Meeting.

“This gathering is not accidental but intentional in reflecting a deliberate decision to pause from the urgency of case files, court schedules, intelligent reports and inter-agency coordination, to strengthen the very foundation, leadership, mindset and cohesion.”

“The Joint Case Team on Cybercrime was borne out of necessity identified by the Attorney General of the Federation.Cyber crime does not respect institutional boundaries or wait for bureaucratic alignment but, evolves rapidly across jurisdictions seamlessly and exploits every gap in coordination.”

On his part, the Managing Partner and Chief Executive Officer STRENGTHEN Africa Limited, Mr Oluseye Adepoju commended the Nigerian government and participating agencies for their continued commitment to strengthening the country’s response to Cybercrime and protecting citizens in an increasingly digital society.”

“It is imperative to note that enforcement alone cannot address the Cybercrime challenges but, stakeholders coming together like this to brainstorm targeted at tackling the menace from the grassroots, Oluseye added.”

Other speakers at the training forum were Mr Hakeem Lawal, Director ICT, NAPTIP, Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Cybercrimes, DCP Olufemi Akinola, Chief Operating Officer, National Financial Intelligent Unit NFIU among others.

Garry Ochigbo, Edited By Grace Namiji