Nigeria and the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation, (EUROJUST), have signed a working arrangement to enable structured and closer cooperation in the fight against organised crime groups.

According to a United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, communique, Nigeria’s Attorney General, LATEEF FAGBEMI, signed the pact with the EU agency while at a Netherlands-funded conference in The Hague.

The arrangement paves the way for the establishment of a contact point for Eurojust in Nigeria and closer communication for the swifter execution of requests for judicial cooperation on both sides.

According to FAGBEMI, Nigeria is the first sub-Saharan African country to sign a working arrangement with the Agency.

The agreement will enable Nigerian authorities to have better access to Eurojust and the judiciary in the 27 EU Member States and third countries with liaison prosecutors at the Agency.

The working agreement which comes into effect immediately, includes arrangements for the exchange of strategic information and communication with the Contact Point, as well as data protection provisions.