24 representatives from 16 national authorities took part in the third Steering Committee meeting of the joint European Union and Council of Europe Partnership for Good Governance II 2019-2022 project on strengthening anti-money laundering and asset recovery in Azerbaijan. The meeting allowed to take stock of the activities implemented to date, as well as to present the planned ones for the final phase of the Project, including further technical support to legislative reforms as well as continuous capacity building on specific aspects of anti-money laundering/countering terrorism financing (AML/CFT) and asset recovery. The meeting offered a venue for national authorities to provide their feedback and suggestions on project implementation. It also enabled them to highlight their current needs and future priorities, for the Council of Europe team to continue to plan and tailor its technical assistance to the evolving national institutional framework and capacities in the area of preventing and fighting economic crime.
During the meeting, national authorities expressed the benefits gained from the project’s support to ongoing processes, for example the extensive assessment and recommendations provided on the national asset recovery framework, some of which are already being taken forward by the concerned authorities; the support to the ongoing money laundering and terrorism financing (ML/TF) national and sectorial risk assessment process; the sharing of practical knowledge in the area of beneficial ownership transparency; the support to the national awareness-raising effort on emerging risks related to virtual assets; or the development of capacities of key national agencies involved in the fight against ML/TF and the recovery of proceeds from crime. Their feedback showed strong national ownership of the project’s actions and results, and the need for follow-up support in these and other areas were confirmed. The meeting also served to stress the importance of enhancing the technical compliance and effectiveness of AML/CFT measures as Azerbaijan is presently preparing for the Fifth Round Evaluation of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and the Financing of Terrorism (MONEYVAL).
The event provided an opportunity to reconfirm the support of the European Union and the Council of Europe to the government’s efforts in the AML/CFT area through a solid partnership. National authorities, on their part, reaffirmed their commitment to pursuing cooperation on the ground, to foster actions for combating money laundering and terrorist financing and recovering proceeds from economic crimes in a more efficient manner.
This event was organised within 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 2019-2022.
