prijava
SARAJEVO, April 16 (FENA) - The conference "Raising awareness on prevention and combating money laundering and financing of terrorism", organized in cooperation with the Ministry of Security of BiH within the project "Anti-money laundering support" funded by the European Union, was held today in Sarajevo.
The conference presented the results of the project so far, aimed at raising awareness among stakeholders, linking them to dialogue and assisting the BiH authorities in the prevention and combating of money laundering and terrorism financing in BiH.
With the support of the European Union, an ongoing three-year project worth 2 million euros has improved and strengthened the capacities of key actors involved in fighting money laundering in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The State Investigation and Protection Agency has been equipped with analytical software and computer hardware for the Anti-Money Laundering System and prepared a draft capacity development plan for the Financial Intelligence and Unconstitutional Crime Units.
A first of its kind visibility event organized in Sarajevo gathered over 50 representatives of agencies and institutions involved in the fight against money laundering so as to highlight the importance of mutual cooperation of all involved authorities as well as to raise awareness of the depth of the issue.
“The European Union is ready to provide continuous support to the efforts required to further strengthen the rule of law in BiH. With this project we aim at increasing the competences of the institutions of BiH regarding the fight against money laundering up to the level required for EU accession,” said Richard Máša, Head of Cooperation of the Delegation of the European Union to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“This project is ambitious and challenging, it requires continuous commitment, strong ownership, close relationships and coordination, primarily from all beneficiaries at all levels of authorities in BiH,” added Máša, underlining that relevant institutions need to explain to the public the upcoming legal adjustments and to highlight the significance of seizure of illegally gained assets, which has become the main objective of criminal proceedings when sanctioning crimes from which these proceedings are derived.
The project has presented the best practices of EU member states and utilized them in preparation of the risk assessment reports in BiH as well as the action plan, drafted on the basis of key identified vulnerabilities in the BiH system.
The greatest project achievements have included the drafting of the new Law for prevention of money laundering and financing of terrorism, creation of a register of bank accounts, and the establishment of an office for seizure of illegally gained assets.
Senior Criminal Investigative Specialist in the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Slovenia, David Smolej, said he believed that the project has already given a lot and will make a significant contribution to an effective and rapid reform in the field of combating money laundering.
“I am pleased that we have identified together those areas in which you need support in the fight against money laundering,” said Smolej.
He pointed out that Slovenia has set the assistance in the development and improvement of the stability and security of the region of Southeast Europe among its priority activities.
Smolej assessed that the countries in the region have made visible progress in the implementation of reforms on the path to the EU, and expressed satisfaction that in the past period BiH also managed to progress.
He pointed out the good and intensive cooperation with the Ministry of Security of BiH, both bilaterally and within the framework of regional cooperation.
Head of the Department for the Fight against Organized Crime and Corruption in the BiH Ministry of Security, Edin Jahić said that the project is being implemented for two years now, with a value of two million euros.
The project "Anti-money laundering support" is financed by the European Union in the amount of two million euros, implemented by the Federal Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Austria and the Austrian Agency for European Integration and Economic Development, in cooperation with the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Slovenia.
(FENA) S. R.
