The National Bureau of Statistics reports that the frequency of bribe-paying stood at 5.4, while an estimated number of 117 million in bribe payments were recorded in one year under former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

The NBS, in its report on corruption patterns and trends in Nigeria in 2023 published on Thursday, said there is a decline in the number of bribes in 2023 compared to the 117 million number of bribes paid recorded in 2019 under Mr Buhari’s watch.

“It is estimated that some 87 million bribes were paid in 2023 (compared with 117 million estimated in 2019) – the equivalent of an average of 0.8 bribes per each adult,” the NBS reported.

In a further comparison of the frequency of bribe-paying menace under Mr Buhari, the NBS stated that bribe payment frequency stood at 5.4 in 2019, while it decreased to 5.1 in 2023.

“In 2023, 5.1 bribes were paid on average by each bribe payer in Nigeria in the 12 months prior to the survey. This represents a modest and statistically insignificant decrease in the frequency of bribe-paying from 2019 when, on average, 5.4 bribes were paid by each bribe payer,” the NBS said.

According to the NBS, The frequency of bribery is, on average, higher in rural areas than urban areas.