On 7 February 2025, the Nigerian Copyright Commission (“NCC”) was designated as a Relevant Organisation under the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery and Management) Act, 2022 (“Act”), by the Proceeds of Crime (Designation of Nigerian Copyright Commission as a Relevant Organisation) Order 2025 (“Order”).
What’s New
The Act provides a legal framework for the recovery and management of assets that are, or reasonably suspected to be proceeds of criminal activity, without a criminal conviction. Initially, enforcement and administrative powers under the Act were granted to agencies such as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (“EFCC”), the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (“NAFDAC”), the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (“NFIU”), the Federal Inland Revenue Service (“FIRS”), and the Nigeria Police Force.
With this latest designation, the NCC has now been added to this list. This empowers the NCC to directly enforce the Act, particularly in cases involving crimes connected to copyright infringement and other intellectual property violations.
The Implications
As a Relevant Organization, the NCC can, amongst other things:
- Trace, seize, and recover assets and proceeds linked to crimes such as copyright infringement subject to the provisions of the Act.
- Take charge of managing seized, recovered, or forfeited assets (“Controlled Property”) through its Proceeds of Crime (Management) Directorate to be established in line with the Act.
- Appoint private asset managers to manage a Controlled Property.
- Maintain a central database of Controlled Properties.
- Initiate or participate in legal proceedings concerning any Controlled Property, enabling the NCC to play an active role in litigation and asset recovery effort.
- Recommend compensation for victims where proceeds have been recovered.
All proceeds, including those from sale of forfeited assets and funds repatriated from foreign countries, must be paid into the Confiscated and Forfeited Properties Account (the “CFP Account”), a dedicated account to be maintained at the Central Bank of Nigeria (“CBN”) by the NCC.
What Does this Mean for Creatives?
Section 70(c) of the Act empowers the President, with the approval of the Federal Executive Council, to authorise compensation for individuals who have suffered significant financial loss on account of the offence or conduct that gave rise to the issuance of a confiscation or forfeiture order over an asset.
This means right holders, authors, and creatives who have suffered grave pecuniary losses from copyright infringement or related offences may be eligible for compensation from the CFP Account, where a forfeiture or confiscation order has been obtained in connection with offences committed against their works from which proceeds were derived, without proceeding directly against the perpetrators.
National Impact
This development enhances Nigeria’s copyright enforcement framework by introducing non-conviction-based asset or proceeds recovery and ensures that perpetrators of copyright related offenses do not benefit from their actions. The Order broadens enforcement options beyond civil suits or criminal proceedings under the Copyright Act 2022, thereby creating an opportunity for compensation without victims themselves proceeding against perpetrators.
