Swiss government orders return of more Abacha money to Nigeria

Switzerland on Friday gave the green light for the return to Nigeria of 290 million US dollars in funds seized in accounts linked to the late dictator, Sani Abacha.

This is part of the sum that Abacha plundered from the west African country and deposited in Swiss banks between 1993 and the time of his death in 1998.

"The transfer became possible with the signing of an agreement with the World Bank to monitor Nigeria's use of the funds," said Livio Zanolari, spokesman for the Swiss justice ministry.

The 290 million dollars is to be paid immediately, and a second installment of 170 million dollars will be made when assets have been converted to cash, said Zanolari, adding that he did not know how long this would take.

The money has been frozen in Swiss bank accounts since 1999.

The Swiss Federal Court gave the all-clear for its return in February when it rejected an appeal by the Abacha family.

The Swiss government has sought World Bank involvement in a bid to guarantee that the money will go towards development projects in areas such as health, education and infrastructure, as promised by Nigeria.

The agreement with the World Bank has now been signed, said Zanolari.

Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo accused Switzerland in May of stalling on the return of the funds, but Swiss officials said the delay was only because of the need to work out details with the World Bank.

The Nigerian government claims Abacha created a criminal organization after his takeover in 1993 and plundered 2.2 billion dollars from state funds until his death from an apparent heart attack in 1998.

After he died, Swiss officials blocked about 700 million dollars in Swiss accounts linked to Abacha and his associates.

About 216 million dollars has so far been returned to Nigeria.

Nigeria has been pushing with some success for the return of Abacha's looted funds from other countries, including Britain, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Austria.

Source: Xinhua