Terrorism : Nigeria Urges AU To Curb Illicit Financial Flows

Nigeria has called on the African Union (AU) to intensify efforts to combat illicit financial flows that continue to fuel terrorism and violent extremism across the continent.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, made the call while addressing the 1354th Ministerial Meeting of the African Union Peace and Security Council, held virtually on Tuesday.

The Minister identified illicit financing as a major enabler of terrorism, saying it facilitates the recruitment of young people, the acquisition of sophisticated weapons and the expansion of terrorist networks.

She urged the Peace and Security Council to strengthen international cooperation in preventing, tracing, recovering and returning proceeds of illicit financial flows to countries of origin.

Ambassador Odumegwu-Ojukwu noted that terrorist groups across Africa are becoming increasingly resilient, adopting emerging technologies such as drones and digital platforms, while sustaining their activities through kidnapping for ransom and illegal mining of precious minerals.

She reaffirmed Nigeria’s condemnation of terrorism and violent extremism in all forms and expressed solidarity with victims of terrorist attacks across the continent. She also commended the sacrifices of security personnel engaged in counter-terrorism operations.

The Minister observed that the growing threat of terrorism in parts of West Africa has been exploited as justification for unconstitutional changes of government, stressing the need for African countries to translate previous continental commitments on counter-terrorism into concrete action.

She specifically called for the implementation of resolutions adopted at the 2022 Malabo Extraordinary Summit on Counter-Terrorism and the 2024 High-Level African Counter-Terrorism Meeting held in Abuja.

Ambassador Odumegwu-Ojukwu, however, cautioned against portraying Africa as the global epicentre of terrorism, warning that such narratives could lead to the profiling and unfair treatment of innocent Africans abroad.

Highlighting Nigeria’s counter-terrorism strategy, the Minister said the country has adopted a comprehensive approach combining military operations with non-kinetic measures, including deradicalisation, rehabilitation and reintegration of former combatants, youth empowerment, education, infrastructure development and community engagement.

She added that Nigeria is strengthening intelligence sharing, border security and regional cooperation through the ECOWAS Regional Counter-Terrorism Strategy, the Early Warning and Response Network, and the Multinational Joint Task Force, which she described as a continental model for collaborative security operations.

The Minister also endorsed stronger intelligence cooperation among AU member states, enhanced cybersecurity, improved early warning mechanisms and the development of continental guidelines for the responsible and ethical use of artificial intelligence in preventing terrorism and violent extremism.

She further called on international partners to adopt a zero-tolerance approach to terrorism by preventing non-state actors from accessing arms, drones, dual-use technologies and other sophisticated weapons, while taking decisive action against illicit arms trafficking.

The virtual meeting was chaired by Uganda’s Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, Haruna Kasolo, in his capacity as Chairperson of the African Union Peace and Security Council for July 2026.

PR/Uju Oparaji