New revelations published today by the International Consortium
of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), in collaboration with more than a
dozen news organizations in Africa, expose fresh details about the
misuse of
corporate secrecy and hidden wealth in Africa, the world’s
poorest continent.
Released nearly four months after ICIJ and more than 100 media
partners first published what is now known as the Panama Papers, 11. 5
million files from the Panama-based law firm, Mossack Fonseca, today’s
investigations include new details about the middleman
at the center of a probe into hundreds of millions of dollars in
suspected bribes paid for oil and gas contracts awarded in Algeria.
The files also reveal the offshore assets,
including a luxury yacht and jet, of a Nigerian aviation and oil
magnate who is reportedly close to a former oil minister and has
recently had some of his assets seized as part of a $1.8 billion probe
into oil sales.
The revelations published by ICIJ and media partners include
investigations from countries that are being examined for the first
time, including Tanzania, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mozambique and Togo.
Businesses in 52 of Africa’s 54 countries used offshore companies
created by Mossack Fonseca, a law firm that specializes in creating
companies often sold and used for anonymity or lower taxes. In 44
countries, offshore companies were used to assist oil, gas and mining
deals and exports, concerning advocates and governments in a continent
where many nations rely on revenue from natural resources. In total, the
Panama Papers include more than 1,400 companies whose names alone
indicate activity in the extractive industries. Although many of these
companies do legitimate business, ICIJ identified 37 companies within
the Panama Papers that have been named in court actions or government
investigations involving natural resources in Africa.
In the oil-rich North African country of Algeria, for example,
investigations continue into nearly $275 million in alleged bribes paid
through a cluster of offshore companies to secure energy contracts.
Twelve of the 17 offshore companies listed by Italian prosecutors as
belonging to the alleged middleman, Farid Bedjaoui, were set up by Mossack Fonseca.
Italian investigators described one of those companies, Minkle
Consultants S.A., as a “crossroads of illicit financial flows” that
channeled millions of dollars from subcontractors to an array of
recipients whose identities are still being untangled.
In a written response to ICIJ, Mossack Fonseca said it follows “both
the letter and spirit of the law. Because we do, we have not once in
nearly 40 years of operation been charged with criminal wrongdoing.
We’re proud of the work we do, notwithstanding recent and willful
attempts by some to mischaracterize it.”
The release of today’s investigations is a major collaboration of
media organizations in Africa that range from traditional newspapers in
Namibia, to popular radio stations in Ghana and to innovative start-up
websites in Morocco. The reporting partners include journalists who have
previously published stories as part of Panama Papers as well as
journalists from Ghana, Tanzania, Niger, Mozambique, Mauritius Burkina
Faso and Togo who are publishing stories for the first time. Many of the
journalists worked in collaboration, exchanging contact information and
court documents and with the editorial assistance of the African Network of Centers for Investigative Reporting, an ICIJ partner.
ICIJ, in partnership with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, has also published an interactive quiz game in conjunction with the new series of investigations. Continent of Secrets
highlights the widespread use of offshore companies by a variety of
businesses across Africa, and challenges players to use their knowledge
of the continent to discover more about the impact of offshore financial
secrecy.
https://panamapapers.icij.org/blog/20160725-africa-investigation-launch.html
