26 May 2026 –

Organization’s profile

The African Center for Governance, Asset Recovery, and Sustainable Development is an independent governance and research organization registered as limited by guarantee under Nigerian laws, headquartered in Abuja, Nigeria. Working with governments, international and regional organizations, the Center promotes good governance, sustainable development, and the rule of law, fostering cooperation in recovering and returning proceeds of corruption to fill funding gaps for the SDGs and AU Agenda 2063.

The Center believes returning stolen assets enables countries in the Global South to build foundation for prosperity, and operates through training, research, programme management, strategy development, international cooperation, and anti-money laundering compliance. Its mission is to reinforce the links between governance, asset recovery, and sustainable development in line with Agenda 2030, strengthening justice institutions, preventing illicit financial flows, recovering stolen assets, and supporting transparent social reuse of returned assets. It envisions a world free from illicit financial flows where proceeds of crime are recovered and returned to victims of corruption to improve livelihoods, reduce poverty, and address inequality. Its three core objectives are improving governance and accountability systems; the recovery and return of stolen assets; and advancing implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Our work can be accessed on www.africancenterdev.org.

Organization’s Experience

The African Center is an active member of the UNCAC Coalition, with its Executive Director, Juliet Ibekaku-Nwagwu, serving as Chair of the Coalition’s Victims of Corruption Working Group coordinating civil society positions on victims’ rights, compensation mechanisms, and peoplecentred asset recovery.

At the 11th Conference of States Parties to the UNCAC (CoSP11) in Doha, Qatar in December 2025, the Center co-hosted two official high-level side events advancing discussions on peoplecentred asset recovery, victims’ compensation, beneficial ownership transparency, and integration with national beneficial ownership registers, while contributing to technical sessions that shaped CoSP11 outcomes.

Beyond the Coalition, the Center’s UNCAC-related work is extensive: it assisted Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Justice’s Asset Recovery and Management Unit in implementing Chapter V of the UNCAC, developing an Asset Recovery and Management Manual and Special Operating Procedures for Efficient Recovery of Stolen Assets. The Executive Director facilitated four sessions on asset recovery under UNCAC at the 24th Commonwealth Law Conference in Malta and featured in the UNODC Asset Recovery Webinar Series on Nigeria’s reform journey.

The Center’s programmes, AML/CFT compliance, POCA implementation, judicial sensitisation, and research, are all anchored in UNCAC obligations on prevention, asset recovery, and international cooperation.

Top 3 Priorities to Achieve as a CCC Member

1. Strengthening People-Centred Asset Recovery and Victims’ Rights Frameworks: As Chair of the Coalition’s Victims of Corruption Working Group, the African Center will prioritize advancing concrete, enforceable mechanisms for victims’ compensation and the transparent social reuse of recovered assets. This includes pushing for stronger UNCAC implementation on Chapter V, advocating for dedicated funding streams that return stolen assets directly to affected communities, and improving the capacity of law enforcement agencies to handle asset recovery cases through a consistently victim-centred approach. The Center will also support relevant organizations in aligning their policies, laws, and operational frameworks with international standards, ensuring that national asset recovery systems are not only legally sound but structurally capable of delivering justice to those most harmed by corruption. Throughout, the African Center will ensure that civil society voices from the Global South, particularly Africa, remain central to shaping how recovered assets are managed, governed, and returned.
2. Advancing Beneficial Ownership Transparency, Judicial Effectiveness, and Anti-Corruption Accountability Systems: The African Center will work within the Coalition to strengthen global standards on beneficial ownership disclosure, pushing for mandatory public registers, system-to-system integration between national databases, and the closing of legal loopholes that enable the concealment of illicit wealth. Recognising that transparency alone is insufficient without effective enforcement, the Center will place particular focus on improving governance through judicial effectiveness — building the capacity of judges, prosecutors, and financial intelligence units to adjudicate financial crime cases and ensure institutional alignment with international AML/CFT standards and FATF obligations. The Center will also continue its collaboration with the Commonwealth Lawyers Association in convening anticorruption meetings and technical dialogues that translate these global standards into actionable reforms at the national and regional levels, directly supporting UNCAC obligations on prevention, accountability, and international cooperation.
3. Amplifying African and Global South Participation in UNCAC Processes and SDG 16 Implementation:  The African Center will use its position within the Coalition to amplify regional perspectives — especially from the Global South, and in particular Africa, ensuring that member contributions meaningfully inform global policy discussions on anti-corruption, asset recovery, and governance reform. This priority encompasses building the capacity of African civil society organisations to engage technically with UNCAC review mechanisms and CoSP sessions, strengthening regional coordination, and advocating for a more transparent, inclusive, and development-responsive UNCAC review process. The Center will deepen its work with regional and international organizations including UNODC, the African Union and its committees, and the African Development Bank, leveraging these relationships to advance shared anticorruption objectives at the continental level. A dedicated focus on youth engagement will form a core strand of this work, ensuring the next generation of African leaders are equipped and empowered to champion integrity and accountability. The Center will also actively support the integration of SDG Goal 16, on Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions, into key national policies and frameworks, reinforcing the indispensable link between effective UNCAC implementation, sustainable development, and the realization of the African Union’s Agenda 2063.

Candidate’s profile

Obialunanma Nnaobi-Ayodele is an experienced programme manager, development strategist, and researcher with over a decade of expertise in governance, public policy analysis, and strategic development. Currently serving as Deputy Programme Coordinator at the African Centre for Governance, Asset Recovery and Sustainable Development in Abuja, Nigeria, she supports project management, programme coordination, and stakeholder engagement across the Centre’s governance and anti-corruption portfolio.

Obialunanma holds a Master’s in International Business Management from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and a Bachelor of Science (Hons.) in Accountancy from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Her career spans leadership roles at the Meluibe Foundation, Akin Fadeyi Foundation, and Preston Consults Limited, where she drove governance reform, citizen accountability, and anti-corruption programming, including managing a $500,000 MacArthur Foundation grant.

A 2017 Fellow of President Obama’s Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) and current Co-Chair (Non-State Actors) of the National Steering Committee of the Open Government Partnership in Nigeria, she brings high-level advocacy experience and a strong civil society voice to governance reform processes. Her competencies span monitoring and evaluation, resource mobilisation, stakeholder management, and strategic planning, making her a credible and accomplished representative for any governance-focused organisation.

Contributions to the work of the Coalition

The African Center brings deep expertise in asset recovery, AML/CFT compliance, judicial effectiveness, and illicit financial flows, grounded in programmatic work across Africa. Through its Executive Director’s leadership of the Victims of Corruption Working Group, technical engagement at CoSP11, collaboration with UNODC, the African Union, AfDB, and the Commonwealth Lawyers Association, and capacity-building work with law enforcement, judiciaries, and financial intelligence units, the Center bridges global policy and ground-level implementation. A board role would enable the Center to systematically amplify African and Global South perspectives, ensuring the Coalition’s agenda reflects the realities of those most affected by corruption worldwide.

Candidacy & Interest Disclosure