SecFin Africa: Ensuring a robust framework for combating illicit financial flows in sub-Saharan Africa

Illicit financial flows from Africa have soared to levels equivalent to the sum of annual disbursements of official development assistance (ODA) and foreign direct investment (FDI) received by African countries. The vulnerability of African countries to illicit financial flows, and in particular to money laundering and terrorist financing, has become more evident as many African countries have been placed on the FATF ‘grey’ list.

In the African context, weak governance structures, fragmented national systems and the limited capacity of national institutions in prevention, investigation and asset recovery compound the problem of illicit crime. Investigation and recovery of assets of illicit origin are hampered by a lack of capacity to implement international cooperation: although the process is formally established and operational, international requests for mutual legal assistance are often not processed or are handled slowly due to procedural errors; furthermore, asset recovery procedures can drag on for decades.

The SecFin Africa programme, in coordination with the EU Global Facility to combat money laundering and terrorist financing (AML/CFT), aims to put the expertise of French, German and Spanish public services at the service of more than 40 countries in Africa. Le projet s'appuiera sur quatre bureaux régionaux propres, en plus de la coordination avec les FSRB, qui sont les organismes de type GAFI dans la région, afin d'identifier les besoins nationaux qui pourraient bénéficier de missions avec les experts du programme.

Project objectives

General objective

Contribute to the fight against illicit financial flows related to transnational organised crime, money laundering and terrorist financing, with the ultimate objective of enhancing domestic resource m

Specific objective

Strengthen national capacities, including law enforcement and judicial capacities, to prevent and combat illicit financial flows related to transnational organised crime, money laundering and terroris

Specific objective

Enhance effective regional and inter-regional cooperation and information exchange in the fight against illicit financial flows, money laundering and terrorist financing.

Specific objective

Increased public awareness and the role of civil society promote greater transparency and hold states accountable for taking action against FFIs and organised crime.

Contribución del proyecto a los ODS