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New UNODC and EAPCCO Counter-Terrorism Centre Issue Paper on Countering Terrorism Financing in Eastern Africa

CTCoE Pic 1 - August

Nairobi (Kenya), Wednesday, 11 August 2021 – The Eastern Africa Police Chiefs Cooperation Organization (EAPCCO) Regional Counter-Terrorism Centre of Excellence (CTCoE) this week, with the assistance of UNODC, published its second Issue Paper.

Entitled “Countering the Financing of Terrorism in Eastern Africa”,  this second Issue Paper, authored by Dr. Anneli Botha (UNODC Terrorism Prevention Consultant) and Mr. Isaiah Abillah (EAPCCO CTCoE Researcher), was presented during the second webinar of the EAPCCO CTCoE and UNODC webinar series on “The Role of Law Enforcement in Preventing and Countering Terrorism in Eastern Africa”.

Following the presentation, a panel of experts, including Ms. Chania Lackey, Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Terrorism Financing Specialist, Ms. Daisy Namayi-Kariu, Regulatory Affairs and Financial Crime Compliance Expert, and Mr. Neil Bennett, International Countering Terrorism Financing Expert, together with Dr. Anneli Botha, discussed the Paper’s findings and recommendation.

The ever-evolving threat of violent extremism and terrorism in Eastern Africa and the rest of the continent requires the best possible policy and operational decisions to prevent and counter these crimes. This requires a much better understanding of these threats. Accordingly, the Issue Paper focuses on exploring the threat and most prominent means of terrorism financing in Member States. The paper also highlights the extent of cooperation between counterterrorism police officers, other security agencies and public and private institutions in Burundi, DRC, Eritrea, Kenya, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda in identifying and investigating the financing of terrorism. The study also presents several recommendations to enhance cooperation and to counter the challenges posed by terrorism financing in EAPCCO member states, including:

  1. Addressing the need for technological resources, insufficient financial resources and understaffed specialised investigators;
  2. Capacity building to raise awareness, with dedicated and tailored training and development of a case management framework;
  3. Measures to enhance cooperation in topics of financial intelligence, organised crime, and new technology;
  4. Improved cooperation within and between countries through various international and regional groups; and
  5. Increased domestic cooperation, including a framework to facilitate cooperation, cross-agency capacity building initiatives and involving financial institutions and prosecution authorities in investigations;

The EAPCCO CTCoE Issue Papers aims to provide policy options and recommendations for Chiefs of Police in Eastern Africa on various aspects of preventing and countering terrorism. In turn, the new initial four-part EAPCCO CTCoE and UNODC webinar series serves as a terrorism prevention knowledge platform for promoting research publications and for roundtable discussions between practitioners and regional experts in Eastern Africa and beyond. Held under the Chatham House Rules, the webinar series will create an opportunity for law enforcement practitioners in the Eastern Africa region, academia, civil society, donors, partners and media, discuss the development of appropriate policy and operational responses to the identified current and emerging threats posed by terrorism and violent extremism.

The initial webinar series will include a further three sessions, which will take place on each Wednesday during August. The next session on 11 August will see the launch of the Issue Paper on “Countering Financing of Terrorism in Eastern Africa”, followed by and Issue Paper on “Law Enforcement engagement with Victims of Terrorism” on 18 August, and finally “Use of the Internet, other Digital Platforms and Digital Devices for Acts of Terrorism in Eastern Africa” on 25 August.

The Issue Papers and webinar series forms part of the UNODC regional project on Supporting EAPCCO and its Regional Counter-Terrorism Centre of Excellence to Prevent and Counter Terrorism in Eastern Africa, funded by the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany. Building on the previous project “Supporting and enhancing the EAPCCO Regional Counter-Terrorism Centre of Excellence for Eastern Africa”, the aim of this project is to support and strengthen the capacity of Eastern Africa Police Chiefs Cooperation Organization (EAPCCO) Member States, EAPCCO Secretariat and EAPCCO Regional Counter-Terrorism Centre of Excellence (CTCoE) to effectively prevent and counter terrorism and links to transnational organized in Eastern Africa, including through enhanced international cooperation in criminal matters, with a rule of law and human rights-based approach.

 

For more information, please contact: 

Mr. Johan Kruger – johan.kruger@un.org

Head of Transnational Organized Crime, Illicit Trafficking and Terrorism Programmes,

UNODC Regional Office for Eastern Africa