The Federal Government has called on all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory to develop and implement their own anti-corruption strategies, stressing that stronger action at the subnational level is vital to improving accountability, transparency and public service delivery.
The call was made on Wednesday in Jos, Plateau State, at a three-day workshop on the implementation tools for the Plateau State Integrity and Accountability Strategy (PLASIAS).
The workshop, which centres on the Monitoring, Learning and Evaluation framework, operational guidelines and templates for PLASIAS, was formally opened by the Head of the National Anti-Corruption Secretariat, Mrs Victoria Ojogbane, who represented the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN.
Ojogbane praised the Plateau State Government for its progress in implementing the National Anti-Corruption Strategy, noting that only seven states had so far begun the process of establishing subnational anti-corruption strategies.
“At a recent engagement between the ICPC and the 36 Attorneys General in Abuja, I shared the scorecard. Out of 36 states, only seven have commenced subnational anti-corruption strategy implementation. I am proud to announce that Plateau State is one of the seven,” she said.
She noted that Plateau had moved beyond drafting its strategy and had also prepared an action plan scheduled for validation on August 28, 2026.
“Laws and action plans do not implement themselves. People do. All of you in this hall, and those yet to join, are critical stakeholders in implementing the State Action Plan,” Ojogbane said.
According to her, the national anti-corruption framework is built around five key areas: prevention, public engagement, ethical reorientation campaigns, enforcement and sanctions, and recovery of proceeds of corruption.
She stressed that states must take ownership of the strategy to ensure that the national framework translates into tangible reforms at the grassroots.
“The federal framework provides the architecture; state implementation provides the reality,” she said.
Ojogbane further said corruption has a direct impact on citizens by undermining public services and weakening confidence in government.
“Corruption is not abstract. It is why a clinic has no drugs, a school has no roof, and a borehole has no water. It erodes public trust. Every reform that increases transparency and accountability is an act of justice,” she said.
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She also conveyed the commendation of the Attorney General to Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, and the Head of Service for their political support and commitment to implementing PLASIAS.
The Lead Consultant on Transparency and Accountability for the Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption Programme (ROLAC), Prof. Ada Chidi Igbokwe, said the workshop was intended to equip relevant institutions with practical mechanisms for translating PLASIAS from a policy document into concrete action.
“I believe that these strategies, when implemented, will strengthen transparency and accountability in the governance process across Plateau and other states that have keyed into the strategy,” Igbokwe said.
Also, the State Project Coordinator of ROLAC in Plateau, Mantim Dala, identified weak accountability practices as a major factor affecting governance and public service delivery in areas such as healthcare, education, housing and infrastructure.
He encouraged participants to deploy the strategy towards improving ethical conduct within public institutions, clarifying that the initiative was not intended to target or victimise public officials.
“The anti-corruption strategy is not actually meant to witch-hunt anyone. It actually aims to prevent such from happening, because when you know that you have done nothing wrong and you have followed due process, you have nothing to fear whether in service or out of service,” Dala said.
The workshop was organised by ROLAC, funded by the European Union and implemented by International IDEA. It brought together representatives of ministries, departments and agencies, civil society organisations and local governments to conclude arrangements for implementing PLASIAS ahead of its validation.