The Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC, has called for the harmonisation and centralisation of Nigeria’s beneficial ownership registers to strengthen transparency, accountability and the fight against illicit financial activities.
The Registrar-General/Chief Executive of the CAC, Hussaini Magaji, made the call at a Stakeholders Workshop on the Beneficial Ownership Register for Journalists and Civil Society Organisations in Abuja.
Magaji said Nigeria currently operates three separate beneficial ownership transparency registers under different institutional frameworks, namely the CAC register, beneficial ownership information for entities operating within Free Trade Zones under NEPZA, and information on the Extractive Industries under the NEITI framework.
He said that although the sectoral arrangements have legitimate reasons, the information being sought across the different systems is substantially the same, stressing the need to connect the databases.
“Nigeria should work towards harmonising and centralising beneficial ownership information within a coordinated national framework with the CAC corporate registry serving as the central corporate data backbone,” he said.
Magaji explained that the objective was not to take away the statutory responsibilities of NEPZA or NEITI but to ensure that beneficial ownership information could be connected and accessed through a coordinated system.
“This is not about taking away the legitimate statutory responsibilities of NEPZA or NEITI. It is about connecting the dots.
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“It is about ensuring that the Nigerian beneficial ownership ecosystem speaks with one voice, one standard and one level of transparency.”
He said beneficial ownership transparency was critical to identifying the natural persons who ultimately own, control or significantly influence companies and other relevant entities.
According to him, Nigeria’s Beneficial Ownership Register has become a reference point internationally, with other countries seeking to learn from the country’s experience in operationalising beneficial ownership transparency.
“We are no longer merely asking what other countries are doing. Other countries are now asking Nigeria: ‘How did you do it?’ That is a significant achievement, and it is a responsibility we must protect.” Magaji said.
The CAC chief executive urged journalists and Civil Society Organisations to interrogate the fragmentation of beneficial ownership information and advocate for interoperability, common standards and greater accessibility, while respecting legitimate privacy and data-protection requirements.
He described the register as an important tool for investigative journalism, urging journalists to establish who owns, controls and benefits from companies when investigating transactions, procurement arrangements and business relationships.
“To our Journalists, I want you to see the Beneficial Ownership Register differently. This is a tool in your hands. It is a tool for investigative journalism.”
Magaji disclosed that anti-corruption and law-enforcement agencies, including the ICPC, EFCC and NDLEA, had utilised beneficial ownership information in investigative and enforcement activities, including tracing ownership structures and identifying persons connected to assets and transactions under investigation.
He, however, cautioned journalists against treating the appearance of a person’s name in a corporate record as evidence of criminality, stressing the importance of verification and responsible reporting.
“Access to the beneficial ownership data is free. We are deliberately making this information accessible because transparency should not become a privilege available only to those who can afford it,” he said.
