The second Technical Project Committee meeting on strengthening anti-money laundering (AML) and asset recovery in Azerbaijan took place, with representatives from 16 national authorities. The aim was to provide an overview of the activities implemented since the beginning of the project and present through discussions the ones envisaged in the workplan till the end of the implementation period. It also ensured an open platform for national authorities to discuss and share their thoughts and feedback on the implemented actions, and to echo needs and suggestions for future needs.
The impact of the project’s contribution was demonstrated by progress in several areas at the national level, inter alia:
- the development of legal amendments to introduce nonconviction-based confiscation;
- the improvement of institutional capacities;
- the increase in the number of money laundering and terrorism financing (ML/TF) cases, as highlighted by national partners during the meeting.
The national authorities emphasised the importance of complementary actions requiring increased attention, which included capacity enhancement in the area of financial investigations, beneficial ownership, mutual legal assistance, application of new IT solutions for prioritisation of AML/TF measures based on risk, development of a new stand-alone law on asset recovery and a dedicated national strategy, a separate training for judges in processing and adjudicating ML/TF cases with a specific focus on gathering and use of evidence and other relevant subjects.
The meeting offered the opportunity to continue the ongoing active dialogue with national partners by planning activities that correspond to their needs and expectations and contribute to a joint effort towards improving the national regime for anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT). The project activities will also help to significantly enhance the effectiveness of the application of AML/CFT measures, which will be the focus of the upcoming fifth round evaluation of Azerbaijan by the Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and the Financing of Terrorism (MONEYVAL).
This activity was organised in the framework of the project “Strengthening anti-money laundering and asset recovery in Azerbaijan,” funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe in their Partnership for Good Governance II.
