Digitalization and Fraud: The Nigerian Public Sector Perspective

The public sector in Nigeria has encountered numerous issues and challenges related to fraud and performance management. Effectively managing fraud is a key factor in determining the growth or decline of a nation. Fraud is a persistent issue that affects the world at large, however digitalization has been proven to be a great tool used in curbing fraud from government activities. Therefore, this study examines the impact digitalization has on fraud in the Nigerian public sector. The study explored descriptive survey research design with population of the study consisting four hundred and fifty (450) personnels from different government parastatals and the convenience sampling method was adopted in choosing the one hundred (100) sample size used in the study. Primary data was obtained by the administration of questionnaires to various respondents. Both descriptive and inferential analyses were conducted in testing the formulated hypothesis at 5% level of significance. The null hypotheses were rejected as it was found that digitalization has a significant effect on fraud measured by Payroll Fraud (PAF) (Adj. R2 =0.257; F(4,94) = 25.039; p=0.000) and Asset Misappropriation (ASM) (Adj. R2 =0.247; F(4,94) = 24.011; p=0.000). In conclusion, findings revealed that in Nigeria, the effect of digitalization on fraud is significant in the public sector. Therefore, the public sector workers as well as the policy makers should work together to ensure that digital facilities are effectively and actively used as a tool for tackling fraud in all government operations. By doing this, the economic and financial state of Nigeria would be greatly improved and this extends to the citizens as well.