Nigeria’s Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises may be losing between N5tn and N10tn annually to employee corruption and occupational fraud, the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise has said.
The economic think tank described the trend as a hidden drain on entrepreneurship and national growth.
According to Muda Yusuf, chief executive director of CPPE, “Employee corruption and occupational fraud constitute one of the largest hidden drains on Nigeria’s entrepreneurial economy, with annual losses ranging from N5 to N10 trillion.”
He noted that MSMEs contribute about 50 per cent of Nigeria’s non-oil Gross Domestic Product and sustain millions of livelihoods.
The statement outlined common fraud practices, including theft of cash and inventory, diversion of sales proceeds, payroll manipulation, procurement kickbacks and falsification of financial records.
CPPE added that small businesses suffer higher losses due to weak internal controls, heavy cash transactions and limited audit capacity.
Meanwhile, the organisation urged MSME operators to embrace digitalisation to curb fraud.
According to Yusuf, “Digitalisation is one of the most powerful low-cost anti-fraud tools available to MSMEs,” stressing that stronger governance and transparency are critical to unlocking the sector’s full potential.
