ICPC Flags NNPC, UNICAL, FCSC as ‘High Corruption Risk’ in Integrity Report

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has listed 13 ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) as “high corruption risk” in its 2025 integrity report.

The anti-graft agency surveyed 357 MDAs in the ethics and integrity compliance scorecard (EICS) report released on Tuesday.

The EICS, complemented by the anti-corruption and transparency units (ACTU) effectiveness index (AEI), evaluated MDAs’ internal control mechanisms, organisational policies, and adherence to statutory requirements, providing a benchmark for peer comparison, government oversight, and potential investor confidence.

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) ranked first with a 91.83 score, followed by the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) with 90.70 points and the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) with 89.93 points.

Conversely, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, the University of Calabar, the Federal Civil Service Commission (FCSC), and the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW) were listed among the MDAs that failed to score a point.

Presenting the report summary, Musa Aliyu, ICPC chairman, represented by Olusegun Adigun, director of system study and review, said no MDA achieved full compliance.

The ICPC chairman said that out of the 344 MDAs assessed, 48 (13.95%) demonstrated substantial compliance, 132 (38.37%) recorded partial compliance, 141 (40.99%) showed poor compliance, and 23 (6.69%) fell under non-compliance.

In comparison, 13 MDAs (3.64%) were non-responsive and classified as high-risk MDAs.

He said 169 MDAs do not have the core values, mission and vision systems for understanding by their staff, while 191 do not have domesticated policies regarding acceptance of gifts, donations, hospitality, and others, which may create integrity questions, noting that government institutions are expected to have a policy to guide employees.

The ICPC chairman said 102 MDAs do not have strategic plans, while 154 lack monitoring systems and failed to conduct monitoring and evaluation of programmes, projects and activities during the year under review.

Quoting the report, he noted that 289 MDAs did not encourage system studies or corruption risk assessments by their ACTUs, while 315 failed to utilise the outcomes of such assessments for decision-making.

On financial management, Aliyu said the report found that 99 MDAs lacked guidelines for granting staff advances, while 69 did not ensure the timely retirement of advances, and 68 allowed their staff to access new advances without retiring previous ones.

In addition, 114 MDAs failed to submit financial reports to the office of the accountant-general of the federation (OAGF), while 40 did not remit internally generated revenue (IGR) as required, as 75 failed to comply with fiscal responsibility provisions.

AUDIT AND ACCOUNTABILITY LAPSES

According to the report, 41 MDAs failed to carry out internal audit activities; 96 did not submit audited financial statements to the office of the auditor-general of the federation and the national assembly within the stipulated six-month period; and 58 did not engage external auditors through due process.

In procurement processes, 88 MDAs did not conduct annual needs assessments, while 32 failed to prepare procurement plans in line with the Public Procurement Act (PPA) 2007 and approved budgets.

The commission said 71 MDAs did not provide external stakeholders with their ethics and compliance principles, nor give the mandatory one-week notice for observing procurement proceedings.

The report indicated that 34 MDAs failed to certify ongoing projects or verify goods supplied before approving payments, while 114 did not conduct market surveys during the year under review.

It also found that procurement officers in 137 MDAs did not attend any training organised by the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) or related institutions.

The anti-graft agency said 50 MDAs are facing petitions or undergoing investigations over procurement and recruitment infractions.

The report also showed that 21 MDAs lack legal instruments establishing their operations, while 16 operate without documented operational manuals, just as 24 did not conduct annual performance appraisals, resulting in irregular staff promotions.

WEAK DIGITISATION

Thirty-six MDAs still operate largely manually, while 14 either lack official websites or have not updated their sites in the past six months, the report said.

In addition, 144 MDAs do not have annual training plans, 146 failed to conduct ethics and compliance training, and 192 engaged unaccredited training consultants.

Whistle-blowing mechanisms were also found to be weak, with 241 MDAs lacking domesticated whistle-blower policies and 269 failing to make such policies accessible to staff and the public.

The ICPC said 94 MDAs did not have domesticated codes of conduct, while 245 operate outdated professional codes that neither reflect current realities nor clearly outline procedures for preventing and addressing misconduct.

The report also indicated that 146 MDAs lack reward systems to encourage ethical behaviour, while existing ones in some organisations are opaque and misaligned with institutional values.