United Nations (UN) has warned that terrorist groups operating in northern Nigeria, West Africa and the Sahel are increasingly deploying drones, sophisticated communication technologies and cryptocurrencies to enhance their operations.

The warning was issued by the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for West Africa and the Sahel and Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), Mr Leonardo Simão, during a briefing to the UN Security Council.

Simão presented the Secretary-General’s latest report on developments in West Africa and the Sahel, covering the period from Nov. 29, 2025, to June 30, 2026.

He said armed groups were becoming more sophisticated and increasingly difficult to contain.

“Armed groups are increasingly using drones, sophisticated communications and cryptocurrencies while coordinating operations across borders,” he told the Security Council.

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According to him, the activities of the groups are closely linked to transnational organised crime and are aimed at consolidating territorial and economic control while weakening public confidence in state institutions.

“The problem is acute, especially in the central Sahel and northern Nigeria.

“Their actions intersect with transnational organised crime and are aimed at consolidating territorial and economic control, erosion of public confidence in state authority, with serious damage to social cohesion,” he said.

Simão said Nigeria, Niger and Burkina Faso continued to experience terrorist attacks, kidnappings and significant civilian casualties.

He disclosed that about 6.8 million people had been displaced across the region, while an additional 1.28 million people had become refugees or asylum seekers.

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The UN official said women, children and young people remained the most affected by the humanitarian crisis, adding that insecurity and funding shortages had severely limited humanitarian access.

Despite the worsening security situation, Simão highlighted ongoing regional cooperation, including the reopening of the Kamba border crossing between Nigeria and Niger.

He also commended the progress made by the Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission in implementing the 2002 International Court of Justice (ICJ) judgment on the land and maritime boundary between the two countries.

“These are some examples of regional efforts towards dialogue,” he said.

Simão stressed that military action alone would not be enough to address terrorism, urging governments to tackle poverty, unemployment and other socio-economic conditions that fuel violent extremism.

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“Fighting poverty and vulnerability must therefore remain a common objective in the broader fight against terrorism. Regional actors are working hard to find solutions,” he said.

He further informed the Council that the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) had renewed efforts to operationalise its standby force, although funding challenges remained a major constraint.

The briefing came shortly after the UN Security Council extended the mandate of UNOWAS until Jan. 31, 2029.

Oladipupo Adebutu, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Ogun State, has alleged that all state governors in Nigeria are benefiting from and misappropriating local government allocations.

Oladipupo Adebutu

Adebutu made the remarks at the Ake Palace in Abeokuta during a meeting with the Egba Traditional Council, where he sought the support and blessings of traditional rulers for his governorship ambition.

He was accompanied by his running mate, Lateefat Sowunmi-Kolapo; the PDP senatorial candidate for Ogun Central, Iyabo Obasanjo; the Ogun State PDP Chairman, Abayomi Tella; and other party leaders and candidates.

Addressing the traditional rulers, Adebutu declared that granting full financial autonomy to local governments would be one of the defining policies of his administration.

“I will do something that will stun this nation and put us in the right direction. Local governments shall get their own money,” he said.

He added: “We must make sure we get local government autonomy. I have been reiterating to you that I, Oladipupo Olatunde, son of Adebutu, was at the National Assembly twice, and I can boast that I didn’t embezzle public funds. How many politicians can say this?”

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Adebutu accused governors across party lines of diverting local government funds.

“It’s not a party thing. Both APC and PDP, all the governors are embezzling local government allocations. It’s not a secret,” he said.

He argued that local councils were able to deliver more development when they had greater control over their finances.

On infrastructure financing, Adebutu said governments must adopt new approaches rather than relying on borrowing.

“You don’t borrow money for infrastructure anymore,” he said, while promising to construct roads that would improve connectivity between Ogun State and Lagos.

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In his remarks, Abayomi Tella, State Chairman of the PDP,  lamented that the local government system in the state is in a state of collapse, recalling that as a former council chairman, he received N200 million as an allocation and used it to construct four roads within his local government.

He expressed concern that the current local government chairmen cannot point to any project of similar impact, attributing the situation to a lack of financial autonomy.

The PDP chairman said he strongly believes in Adebutu’s advocacy for local government autonomy, stressing that Adebutu is prepared and ready to lead the development of Ogun State.

Sowunmi-Kolapo, deputy governorship candidate, called on her kinsmen to support her political aspiration, noting that she has continued to support the development of Egbaland.

Also speaking, Iyabo Obasanjo, PDP candidate for Ogun Central Senatorial District, said that after leaving the APC following her unsuccessful governorship bid, she came to believe that Adebutu has the vision and political will to actualise her aspirations and manifesto for the people.

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Obasanjo further noted that no political party has a more formidable team in Egbaland than the PDP, urging Egba monarchs to throw their weight behind the party in the interest of the people.

In his welcome address, the Alake and Paramount Ruler of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo, described Adebutu as “trustworthy and reliable,” declaring his support for the party’s flag bearer ahead of the 2027 governorship election.

The Alake recalled his long-standing relationship with Adebutu’s father and expressed confidence in Adebutu’s character and leadership qualities.

“The son of a lion must resemble the lion. In fact, he is an even better version of his father,” Oba Gbadebo said.

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Federal high court in Abuja has ordered the final forfeiture of N941,994,079.86 linked to suspected ghost workers uncovered in the integrated payroll and personnel information system (IPPIS) to the federal government.

IPPIS is a centralised payroll system the federal government introduced to manage the salaries of federal public sector employees.

Binta Nyako, presiding judge, gave the order following an application filed by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).

“That an Order is hereby made for the Final Forfeiture to the Federal Republic of Nigeria the Sum of N941,994,079.86 seized during investigation into the IPPIS Payroll scam in the year 2024,” Nyako ruled.

Okor Odey, ICPC spokesperson, announced the forfeiture in a statement issued at the weekend.

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The ICPC spokesperson said investigations by the commission uncovered “large-scale payroll fraud involving hundreds of non-existent public servants, with a total sum of N941,994,079.86 traced to accounts linked to the scheme”.

Odey said a review of the IPPIS conducted in 2023 revealed the “existence of numerous “ghost workers” embedded within the payrolls of several Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs)”.

According to him, following the findings, President Bola Tinubu approved a “comprehensive audit” of the IPPIS.

He added that a joint investigation between the ICPC and the office of the accountant-general of the federation in April 2025 led to the discovery of 587 suspected ghost workers on the IPPIS platform.

“Investigations revealed that fictitious IPPIS identities had been created for non-existent personnel across multiple MDAs, with salaries paid over extended periods into accounts belonging to individuals and companies,” Odey said.

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“In many cases, the account names did not correspond with those of the purported employees, while some accounts received multiple salary payments simultaneously.”

The ICPC spokesperson said the agency placed post no debit (PND) restrictions on all identified accounts to freeze the funds suspected to be proceeds of fraud.

He said the affected MDAs include the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), federal ministries of defence, education, agriculture and rural development, works, water resources, and interior.

Others are National Board for Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Benin, University of Calabar, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, University of Maiduguri, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and the office of the accountant-general of the federation.

The ICPC spokesperson said 120 civil servants were cleared after their identities and employment status were confirmed following a verification exercise in 2025.

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He added that 467 bank accounts remain linked to unverified individuals with holders yet to be identified.

He noted that the N941.9 million currently frozen in the 467 bank accounts has been forfeited to the federal government.

He disclosed that the agency published the names of the 910 individuals suspected to have benefited from the purported fraud in two national dailies on March 18, 2026.

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