African prosecutors meet in Mombasa

President William Ruto arrives at the 16th Annual General Meeting and Conference of Africa Prosecutors' Association at Sarova Whitesands in Mombasa on January 30, 2023. PHOTO | POOL

By SAM KIPLAGAT More by this Author

President William Ruto on Monday officially opened the Africa prosecutor's Annual General Meeting (AGM) and conference, which brings together prosecutors across the continent under the Africa Prosecutor's Association (APA).

The 16th AGM and conference is being held as countries in Africa continue to lose billions each year to organised criminal syndicates, that profit from corrupt activities such as; misappropriation of public funds, fraud, tax crimes and illegal trade among others. 

The prosecutors will discuss various laws, international and regional instruments, as well as bilateral Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties that various African Governments can utilize in the recovery of cross-border proceeds of crime.

Other guests invited include the German ambassador to Kenya Sebastian Groth, EU ambassador Henriette Geiger and Kenya's Director of Public Prosecution Noordin Haji. 

The five-day conference will also explore, experiences and good practices for recovering proceeds of crime held in foreign jurisdictions.

Fraudsters have always tried to use Kenya to launder money from drugs, wildlife trafficking, and terrorism financing among others. Still, a strong regulatory regime by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and the Financial Reporting Center (FRC) have managed to flag suspicious funds

The implementation of the Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act (PoCAMLA), has seen the State step up surveillance, netting hundreds of millions of shillings in suspected dirty cash. 

The participants will also deliberate on strategies that can be adopted to enhance cooperation in the recovery of proceeds of crime among African countries.

Crooks also use technological development to look for loopholes and sneak in dirty money and thus, another critical area that will be discussed by the prosecutors is online crimes and legislative discrepancies in regulation.

Criminals exploit this area because of advancements in technology to steal data from individuals, corporations and government entities.  

Instances of online child sexual exploitation are another area as prosecutors will explore ways that will help curb the vice.

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