Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Reports Progress in Recovering Proceeds of Corruption and Organized Crime 

 

13-14 November 2023, Kresevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina: Led by the Asset Management Agency of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), an interdepartmental working group has recently completed the final draft of a new FBiH strategy and action plan to facilitate systematic and timely return of stolen assets.

The new strategy looks at the need to continuously improve the normative framework for asset recovery, advance financial investigations, and improve institutional cooperation and coordination, whilst ensuring adequate funding and training of related institutions and staff.

In parallel with the strategy, which will now move into the stage of FBiH government consideration for possible adoption by the end of this year, the working group finalised its discussion on an updated law regulating asset recovery and management in FBiH.

UNODC supports the working group, which is composed of representatives from the FBIH Ministry of Justice, FBiH Asset Management Agency, prosecutors, police, financial investigators and academia, and works with the FBiH Asset Management Agency to train its staff. A cooperation agreement between the FBiH Asset Management Agency and the FBiH Center for Education of Judges and Prosecutors is also in place. Facilitated by these partnerships, a total of 738 judges, prosecutors, police officers and other practitioners involved in asset recovery have increased their knowledge and skills during the past 2 years.

As a result, the number of cases handled by the FBiH Asset Management Agency has increased significantly up to nearly 100 during the last 2 years with the volume of confiscated stolen assets amounting to over 5 million KM (or 2.8 million USD) on an annual basis. There is a tendency for these numbers to grow.

UNODC builds capacities on asset recovery as part of its regional platform for fast-tracking implementation of the UN Convention against Corruption in the Western Balkans. Bosnia and Herzegovina is an active participant in this platform and the related Regional Anti-Corruption and Illicit Finance Roadmap, endorsed by all Western Balkan jurisdictions in 2021.