Overview
In 2023, Equatorial Guinea boasts the fifth highest GDP per capita in the African continent resulting from its substantial oil wealth. However, 70 per cent of Equatorial Guinea’s population still lives in poverty due to misappropriation of public funds, particularly in the oil industry.
Teodorin Obiang, the country’s vice-president has been in the limelight and focus of multiple investigations into corruption and misappropriation of state resources over the past decade. International legal action has led to significant asset seizures and recoveries, with an ongoing focus on ensuring these assets are returned to the people of Equatorial Guinea.
Asset recovery in Equatorial Guinea
Asset recovery cases
In France, the Biens mal acquis (Ill-gotten gains) case was a first of its kind proceedings, with legal action brought against a current, high ranking official, and which saw the confiscation and seizure of amassed luxury assets from the Equatoguinean vice president.
The case began due to the efforts of anti-corruption organisations, Transparency International France and Sherpa, who accused Obiang of embezzling state funds to buy luxury assets in France.
Despite earning an official salary of less than USD 100,000 annually, he amassed a fortune, purchasing:
- A 101-room mansion on the exclusive Avenue Foch in Paris valued at over EUR 107 million. The house was decorated with more than EUR 40m worth of furniture, including a EUR 1.6m Louis XV desk, a Rodin sculpture and a dozen Fabergé eggs.
- A fleet of luxury cars, including Ferraris, Bugattis, and Maseratis.
- High-end art and designer goods such as watches, suits, and wines.
In 2017, French courts made headlines by convicting Teodorín Obiang of embezzlement and money laundering. In 2021, France’s highest appeal court, the Court of Cassation, upheld this conviction and confirmed the confiscation of Teodorín’s assets amount to EUR 150 million. Teodorin Obiang was also fined an addition EUR 30 million by the court.
Similar to the biens mal acquis case, in 2011, the U.S. Department of Justice seized over USD 70 million in assets from Teodorín Obiang, while Swiss authorities in 2017 confiscated his USD 100 million yacht and 25 luxury cars. Obiang agreed to forfeit USD 30 million in the U.S. in 2014, and Switzerland auctioned the cars in 2019, raising USD 27 million. The proceeds of the Swiss auction is to benefit Equatorial Guinea’s people, with the funds yet to be returned.
Asset repatriation
Responsible asset repatriation is critical in Equatorial Guinea where entrenched corruption creates a high risk that the funds will be re-stolen. It is imperative that any repatriation process is guided by GFAR principles and by the Civil Society Principles for Accountable Asset Return.
On 2 March 2021, France’s National Assembly unanimously adopted a new law as part of the draft legislation on solidarity-based development and the fight against global inequality. This law includes provisions that allow assets confiscated in cases like Teodorín Obiang’s case to be returned to the populations of the countries from which the wealth was stolen.
In a document attached to the 2024 finance bill, the French government allocated EUR 6.1 million for the restitution of ill-gotten gains to the countries from which the assets were stolen. This marks the first time funds have been allocated to this budget line. This fund, intended for returning confiscated assets to their countries of origin, is part of ongoing discussions with the authorities of Equatorial Guinea regarding how the sum will be used.
In 2021, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Department of Justice announced agreements to distribute USD 19.25 million to the United Nations for COVID-19 vaccine procurement and USD 6.35 million to Medical Care Development International (MCDI) for medical supplies and medicines in Equatorial Guinea. This distribution was part of the implementation of a civil forfeiture settlement related to assets allegedly acquired by Teodorín Obiang using corruption proceeds. These funds represent two-thirds of the assets seized by U.S. authorities from Obiang.
National Governance and Reform
Efforts to recover assets represent only a part of the broader fight against corruption in Equatorial Guinea. To ensure that the country’s wealth is used to improve the lives of its citizens, Equatorial Guinea needs to implement significant governance reforms.
One promising avenue is the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), which Equatorial Guinea applied to rejoin in 2019. EITI is a global standard for promoting open and accountable management of natural resources, and it aims to foster transparency in how revenues from extractive industries are handled.
Equatorial Guinea also adopted reforms in recent years including with the passage of an Anti-Corruption law in late 2021. The IMF reports that authorities have made efforts to activate the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) by allocating funds in the revised 2023 budget and the 2024 budget and are currently finalizing the regulations needed to operationalize the ACC and the asset declaration process. Additionally, it was also reported there has been an increased focus on combating corruption within the public administration, highlighted by several recent high-profile anti-corruption cases – although this is tempered by the Obiang family still being in power.
It is also worth noting that although Equatorial Guinea signed an economic reform program named the “Good Governance and Anti-corruption Plan” with the IMF in 2019, there have been several delays in its implementation.
Our work in Equatorial Guinea
Our work on Equatorial Guinea has focussed on support for the victims of corruption to participate in decisions around assets due to be returned. Towards this aim, we have worked with coalitions of organisations to support transparency, accountability and participation in the return of assets to Equatorial Guinea for several years. This has included participating in and organising roundtable discussions and engaging in dialogue around potential return modalities.
As part of this work, we also collaborated on a report proposing avenues to repatriate the recovered assets in different countries for the benefit of Equatorial Guineans in a way that helps combat corruption, while empowering victims through participating in the design of reparations and disbursement of funds to their rightful recipients: the citizens of Equatorial Guinea.
Further reading
Reports
Briefing Paper: Equatorial Guinea’s Stolen Assets Framework for Reparation
This briefing paper published by Redress, CIFAR, Human Rights Watch, EG Justice and Transparency International France offers recommendations to ensure responsible and effective reparations and repurposing of Equatorial Guinea’s stolen assets.
Blogs
Returning ill gotten gains to Equatorial Guinea
Equatorial Guinea, while rich in natural resources, is plagued by the corruption and embezzling of its national treasury by the Obiang family. In France, the Biens mal acquis (Ill-gotten gains) case was a first of its kind proceedings, with legal action brought against a current, high ranking official, and which saw the confiscation and seizure of amassed luxury assets from the Equatoguinean Vice President. The case began due to the efforts of anti-corruption organisations, Transparency International France and Sherpa, who accused Obiang of embezzling state funds to buy luxury assets in France.
The spoiled kid who loots Equatorial Guinea
Teodorin’s father, President Obiang, not only installed his eldest son as minister of forestry; he also granted him a massive timber concession, giving Teodorin control over Equatorial Guinea’s second most important resource. The position also gave Teodorin control over the nation’s infrastructure—convenient, since he also owned the the country’s largest construction businesses. Teodorin allegedly demanded “taxes” or “fees”—which the U.S. claimed were nothing more than bribes—from other companies seeking to harvest timber in Equatorial Guinea.