Kemi Adeosun: FG Identified 45,000 'Ghost Workers' Through BVN Integration

Kemi Adeosun, who formerly served as Nigeria's Minister of Finance, has detailed how the Federal Government successfully identified 45,000 "ghost workers" on its payroll by integrating the Bank Verification Number (BVN) system. This technological approach was instrumental in tackling significant payroll fraud.

During her address at the Citadel School of Government Dialogue series in Lagos, Adeosun explained that the federal payroll represented the government's most substantial expenditure. She noted that previous efforts to streamline this expenditure using biometric technology had faltered due to resistance from certain paramilitary organisations, including the Police and the Army, which were unwilling to adopt centralised processing systems.

To overcome these obstacles, Adeosun's team opted to utilise the existing BVN database rather than implement a new biometric system. This strategy allowed them to bypass the need for cooperation from reluctant institutions.

"The payroll was our biggest cost," Adeosun stated. "Previous biometric efforts had stalled because paramilitary groups refused to cooperate. We bypassed this by using BVN data. We ran the federal payroll against the BVN database, and the result was staggering: we found 45,000 'ghost workers.'"

She further clarified that the term "ghost worker" did not always imply a sophisticated, organised criminal network. In many instances, the issue stemmed from systemic weaknesses and individual malfeasance.

"In many cases, it wasn't a 'ghost,' but one person's BVN linked to multiple salaries," she explained. "It wasn't always a cartel. Sometimes it was inefficiency—people who had died or transferred but were still receiving salaries."