The Federal Government yesterday authorised the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, to endorse an agreement between Nigeria and Switzerland to facilitate the repatriation of $321 million Abacha loot at the forthcoming global forum on asset recovery in the United States (U.S.) next month.Malami, who disclosed this yesterday while briefing State House Correspondents after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, said that efforts to recover stolen assets by the administration had started yielding results.The AGF said the agreement would empower him to recover the fund on behalf of Nigeria.
He said that representatives of both countries would sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the repatriation of the fund.Meanwhile, the FEC has celebrated Tuesday’s ranking of Nigeria moving 24 places up from its last ranking on ease of doing business by the World Bank Doing Business report.Minister of Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, who also briefed newsmen, said the World Bank ranking was significant because it exceeded the target of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), which only sought to move Nigeria 20 places up.Enelamah said the ranking showed that the government was moving in the right direction.Besides, Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, said the FEC had approved N40.2 billion for the completion of an irrigation dam in Kotangora in Niger State.Also, Minister of Agriculture, Audu Ogbeh, said massive smuggling of rice into Nigeria through land borders remained a great challenge.Credit: Guardian Newspaper
