Falana Explodes: Where Is Nigeria’s $3.4bn IMF Loan? Demands Urgent Probe

Prominent human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), has called on Nigeria’s anti-corruption agencies—the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC)—to investigate the alleged diversion of the $3.4 billion loan secured from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

Falana made the demand on behalf of the Alliance on Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond (ASCAB) in a statement issued on Sunday. He also urged the IMF Board to investigate the alleged failure of its management to ensure that the emergency loan was used for its intended purpose.

Additionally, Falana asked the IMF to halt further deductions from Nigeria in the form of net charges, basic interest, and administrative fees—totaling SDR 125.99 million (about ₦275.28 billion)—until an independent investigation is completed.

Although the IMF confirmed last week that Nigeria had fully repaid the principal sum of the loan under the Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI), scheduled charges remain.

Falana recounted that the $3.4 billion loan was approved on April 28, 2020, to help stabilize Nigeria’s economy, bolster its healthcare system, and cushion the effects of the COVID-19 crisis and plummeting oil prices. At the time, the IMF emphasized the need for strict governance measures, including audits and transparency in spending.

However, a 2020 audit report by the Auditor-General of the Federation—released in January 2024—flagged multiple irregularities in the handling of the funds. According to the report, $2.4 billion was transferred on April 30, 2020, to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, while the remainder was sent to the CBN’s account at the Bank of China in Shanghai. By June 1, the funds had been moved into short-term investments at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), respectively.

The Auditor-General noted that these transactions lacked proper documentation and government approval, and the funds were reclassified as part of the CBN’s external reserves, allowing them to generate interest—contrary to their emergency purpose.

Further, the report revealed that on August 7, 2020, the Ministry of Finance requested the monetisation of $700 million for the 2020 federal budget. A week later, the CBN debited ₦265.65 billion using an exchange rate of ₦379.5/$—above the official ₦360.5/$ at the time. The funds were distributed among the COVID-19 Public Sector Account (₦252 billion), Forex Equalisation Account (₦13.3 billion), and the Exchange Commission Account (₦350 million), with a 2% commission deducted despite the funds being public property.

By year-end, an unmonetised balance of $2.7 billion (roughly ₦1.02 trillion) remained unaccounted for, the report stated.

The Auditor-General recommended that the CBN Governor explain the movement and reclassification of funds without authorization, provide bank statements for verification, and return all interest earned to the public treasury. He also called for the recovery of the ₦13.3 billion and ₦350 million, with evidence of remittance submitted to the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee.

Falana emphasized that the Auditor-General’s findings demand urgent accountability. He urged that all individuals implicated be referred to the EFCC and ICPC for investigation and prosecution under Financial Regulation 3112.

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