Nigerian Public Officials Took N721 Billion Bribes in 2023 -Reveals NBS Report

By: Abdulwasiu Akintunde 

In the year 2023 alone, Nigerian Public Officials received bribes totaling no less than N721 billion, according to a new report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). 

The NBS report titled “Corruption in Nigeria: Patterns and Trends,” revealed on Thursday shows that this amount represents about 0.35 percent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product. 

The findings are based on a survey conducted in collaboration with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. The survey indicated that the average cash bribe was N8,284, up from N5,754 in 2019. 

As gathered by OPEN TELEVISION Naija, “According to the 2023 survey, the average cash bribe paid was 8,284 while the nominal average cash bribe size increased since 2019 (from NGN 5,754), this does not account for inflation. 

The inflation-adjusted average cash bribe in 2023 was 29 percent smaller than in 2019 in terms of what could be bought with the money. 

Overall, it is estimated that a total of roughly NGN 721 billion equivalent to $1.26 billion was paid in cash bribes to Public Officials in Nigeria in 2023, corresponding to 0.35 percent of the entire Gross Domestic Product of Nigeria. 

The report highlighted that corruption ranked fourth among the most pressing issues in Nigeria in 2023, following the cost of living, insecurity, and unemployment. It added, “This suggests relatively stable and high levels of concern about corruption over time compared to other issues such as education or housing.”

Nigerians' confidence in the Government’s anti-corruption efforts has declined over time and across regions. While in 2019, more than half of the citizens believed that the Government was effective in fighting corruption, by 2023, this share had dropped to less than a third. 

This downward trend in citizens’ confidence is evident nationwide, with all six zones recording reductions of more than 10 percentage points between 2019 and 2023 regarding the share of citizens who thought the Government was effective in fighting corruption.

OPEN TELEVISION Naija further reports that 56 percent of Nigerians interacted with a public official in 2023, down from 63 percent in 2019. Despite this reduction, bribery remains widespread, with an average of 5.1 bribes paid per bribe payer, totaling approximately 87 million bribes nationwide, a decrease from the estimated 117 million bribes in 2019. 

Bribery is more common in rural areas, with rural residents paying an average of 5.8 bribes compared to 4.5 bribes in urban areas. Regarding payment methods, the report noted that over 95 percent of bribes were paid in monetary form (cash or money transfer) in 2023. 

It also highlighted that public officials were more likely to demand bribes, while bribery involving private sector actors, such as doctors in private hospitals, increased from 6 percent in 2019 to 14 percent in 2023.