Nigeria’s former finance minister, Kemi Adeosun, says the federal government uncovered about 45,000 “ghost workers” after integrating the Bank Verification Number (BVN) system into its payroll.
Speaking at the Citadel School of Government Dialogue series in Lagos, Adeosun said the federal payroll — the government’s largest expenditure — had long been plagued by fraud and inefficiencies that earlier biometric verification efforts failed to address.
She said resistance from paramilitary institutions, including the police and military, had stalled previous attempts to centralize payroll verification systems. To overcome this, her team leveraged the existing BVN database instead of introducing new biometric processes.
“We ran the federal payroll against the BVN database, and the result was staggering: we found 45,000 ‘ghost workers,’” she said.
Adeosun clarified that the fraud was often less complex than assumed, noting that in many cases a single BVN was linked to multiple salaries. She added that some irregularities were due to systemic lapses, such as deceased or transferred workers who remained on the payroll.
To strengthen accountability, she said permanent secretaries were required to personally sign off on payrolls under their supervision, creating a clear chain of responsibility.
Adeosun also emphasized the role of data in public policy, urging officials to rely on empirical evidence to support reforms. She encouraged leaders to embrace emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, while maintaining discipline in execution.
“If you can’t explain your policy, you shouldn’t be doing it,” she said.
The event also featured Tunde Bakare and Mike Adebamowo, who highlighted the importance of combining technology with strong leadership to address governance challenges.
Participants at the dialogue agreed that while the payroll cleanup marked a significant achievement, such reforms must be backed by legislation to ensure their sustainability.
Bakare praised Adeosun’s resilience, noting that her return to public life without allegations of corruption reinforced her credibility in governance.
