Financial Crime World

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Albania Steps Up Fight Against Financial Crime

A Bid to Strengthen Anti-Corruption and Anti-Money Laundering Regimes

TIRANA, ALBANIA - Albania has launched an ambitious initiative, Action against Economic Crime in Albania (AEC-AL), to combat financial crime. The goal is to increase trust in the rule of law and democracy in the country by implementing key recommendations from European and international monitoring bodies.

Who Benefits?

The AEC-AL will work closely with various stakeholders, including:

  • Parliament of Albania
  • Ministry of Justice
  • Ministry of Interior
  • Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs
  • High Inspectorate on Declaration and Audit of Assets and Conflicts of Interest (HIDAACI)
  • Albanian Financial Supervisory Authority

How Will It Work?

The initiative will provide a mix of advisory and capacity-building interventions tailored to the specific needs of beneficiaries. The AEC-AL will focus on several key areas:

  • Strengthening legislation and regulatory frameworks
  • Institutional capacity building
  • Enhanced inter-agency and international cooperation

What Are the Expected Results?

The AEC-AL is expected to achieve significant results in preventing and combating corruption, money laundering, and terrorist financing. These include:

  • Improved legislation and institutional frameworks
  • Strengthened asset recovery and management practices
  • Effective mechanisms to prevent and suppress money laundering and terrorist financing
  • Boosted inter-institutional cooperation and coordination

A Multi-Million Euro Investment

The total budget for the AEC-AL initiative is 800,000 EUR, with an additional 41 million EUR allocated to the overall Horizontal Facility program. The European Union has provided 85% of the funding, while the Council of Europe has contributed 15%.

For more information on the AEC-AL initiative, visit the Economic Crime and Cooperation Division website at www.coe.int/econcrime or the Action against Economic Crime specific website at www.coe.int/HF-II-AEC.