Quick Read:
- Fraud incidents expected to be higher than anywhere else in Sub-Saharan Africa
- 33% of security chiefs say the threat of violence towards company executives has soared
- 90% of companies will increase their physical security budgets in the next year, the highest rate globally
- Economic instability to rise to 47% next year, up from 40% last year
Nigerian companies anticipate the highest rates of fraud in Sub-Saharan Africa next year. Half (50%) expect to face external fraud and 41% anticipate insider fraud to impact their businesses.
The threat of violence toward company executives has jumped in the last two years according to 33% of security chiefs.
Global institutional investors share this concern. Seven in 10 (68%) say the contributions of senior executives to strategic decision-making, leadership and innovation represents 30% or more of the value of the companies they invest in.
In response to rising threats, more security chiefs in Nigeria (90%) than anywhere else in the world say their physical security budget will increase in the next year (81% regional average, 66% global average).
These are key findings from the World Security Report, commissioned by Allied Universal®, the world’s leading security and facility services provider and its international business, G4S.
2,352 chief security officers (CSOs) in 31 countries at medium and large, global companies with total revenue exceeding $25 trillion took part in the research. 58 security chiefs from Nigeria and 174 in total from Sub-Saharan Africa were surveyed.
The report also incorporates the crucial perspectives of 200 global institutional investors managing over $1 trillion in assets.
Reinforcing the prevalence of financial motivated threats, economic instability is expected to surge in Nigeria next year with nearly half of security chiefs (47%) predicting it to be a security-impacting hazard.
This is up from 40% last year.
The top driver of intentional insider threats is financial dissatisfaction (low pay, lack of bonuses or incentives) more than half of security chiefs say (55%). This is higher than anywhere else in the world alongside Kenya (36% global average).
“Financial pressures mean fraud is pervasive in everyday life and some individuals can be easily exploited. But Nigeria also has plenty of opportunities and many businesses want to operate here, giving careful consideration to how they can best protect their people and operations. Real-time information and intelligence gathering is essential, particularly as the risks differ depending on which part of the country you are in,” said Jonas Ahl, managing director of G4S Nigeria.
Nearly a third of businesses view civil unrest as a top hazard for the coming year. Typically this translates into protests and demonstrations which are predicted to impact 17% of companies, well above the global average of 10%.
Nigeria will also face a growing threat from activist groups, with 86% of security chiefs saying they increasingly pose a physical security risk to corporate facilities and executives – higher than anywhere else in the region (78% regional average, 77% global average).
“Consistent with the 2023 findings, fraud is the dominating internal and external threat across the region which can be tied back to economic instability. Despite these challenges, there are plenty of opportunities across the region and it is encouraging to see the planned investment in smart security infrastructure and AI-powered video surveillance,” said Christo Terblanche, regional president of G4S in Africa.
The anticipated global and regional average for external fraud next year is 30% and 40%. Last year, 45% of companies in Nigeria experienced this threat.
