The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has declared the opening of a whistleblower website for Nigeria. Part of CBN’s approach for a credible and open operational framework across the Nigerian financial system is the externally hosted platform scheduled for January 1, 2025.
The bank said in its revised paper for the last month of the year available to BrandSpur banking and finance news that the platform is meant for people to participate in all kinds of wrongdoing without regard for guilt or intimidation.
The statement partly reads: “In furtherance of management’s commitment to promoting an organization with high ethical standards, honesty, and integrity, the Central Bank of Nigeria is launching a new externally hosted platform to manage whistleblowing.”
CBN pointed out that the platform is a major step in establishing a safe surrounding for all. It provides employees, suppliers, consultants, executives, and other stakeholders with quick access to document personal and professional misbehavior, unethical activity, or legal infractions.
Continuing, it reads: “This (the platform) marks a significant step toward creating a safe environment for employees, vendors, consultants, executives, and other stakeholders to report incidences of personal and professional misconduct, unethical behaviour, or violations of the law without fear of retaliation.”
CBN underlined that the platform reflects its will to maintain the best standards of integrity both inside and outside the larger Nigerian financial system. Regarding how it operates, the bank said that every report turned in via the channel will be thoroughly investigated under professional and open standards.
The statement read: “All reports made via this channel will be investigated by the Bank promptly and treated with utmost confidentiality and professionalism, ensuring that every concern is taken to protect the whistle-blower.”
CBN ended by reassuring whistleblowers that all issues reported will be handled with utmost care and required support to safeguard their identities and rights, even if additional specifics on the platform will be disclosed in the long run. It stated: “The new reporting channel will go live on 1st January 2025, and further details will be shared soon as the Bank continues to promote a culture of operational excellence.”
The launch of the channel emphasizes its foresight in protecting Nigerians’ ethical rights for a legitimate financial system. It also reflects CBN’s step to uphold moral values and encourage responsibility in the financial industry.
The Central Bank of Nigeria has lately been using its authority to provide Nigerians with a safe financial environment. This also reflects its attempt to establish and win the confidence of Nigerians after a year in which consumers of commercial banks have experienced many disruptions in different online transactions. CBN, earlier in the month, made public dedicated phone numbers and email addresses for the public to report problems with automated teller machines (ATMs) and deposit money banks (DMBs) access.
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Aiming to reduce the currency circulation problems afflicting the nation, the instruction of the top bank also requires banks to guarantee effective cash disbursement both over-the-counter (OTC) and via ATMs. People were also advised to document events related to the inconveniences by supplying comprehensive information, including the name of the bank, the branch location, and the date and time of the incident.
On December 2, 2024, CBN also started a new website in line with its strategy to enhance the medium of information distribution regarding the operations, financial statistics, regulatory frameworks, and updates on the monetary policy of the bank. The bank noted during its launch of the new channel that the updated website offers a range of fresh content, therefore encompassing a wider spectrum of information concerning its mandate.
CBN further mentioned that the website is mobile device compatible, enabling navigation across several web browsers and devices.
Olayemi Cardoso, the CBN Governor, noted during the launch that the newly built website will offer a better user-friendly experience and more information access, so supporting its mission of openness, responsibility, and developing trust with its stakeholders.
According to him: “Information is something that we are ensuring to improve on at the Central Bank. We are bringing out activities that are closer to the people. We put out the information and we allowed people to have a line of sight and have an idea of where they are going and how far we expected to continue from that particular point.”
