Money Laundering MOLICO Project Moldova Activities

MOLICO: Project against corruption, money laundering and the financing of terrorism in Moldova

Based on the success of the PACO Moldova anti-corruption project in 2005, an agreement for a follow-up project was signed in July 2006 between the Council of Europe, the European Commission and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). The MOLICO project started in August 2006. It will have a duration of three years and a budget of Euro 3.5 million and is aimed at the following objectives:

to ensure the implementation of Moldova’s anti-corruption strategy on the basis of annual action plans
to strengthen the anti-money laundering/counter-terrorist financing (AML/CTF) system of Moldova in accordance with international standards and good practices as well as Moneyval recommendations

The Centre for Combating Corruption and Economic Crime (CCCEC) of Moldova is the main counterpart institution in Moldova.

Activities

Anti-Corruption component
Anti-Money Laundering component

Our activities in October 2008

- A study visit on Combating the Financing of Terrorism (Giessbach II) was held from 1 to 3 October 2008 in Davos (Switzerland) and focused on the following topics: the use of intelligence in detecting terrorist financing; the importance of reaching out to the civil sector; terrorist financing typologies; trends in the development of terrorism; fighting terrorist financing and protecting human rights: a dilemma?; effective implementation of the international standards on cash couriers; cyber terrorism / how do terrorists use modern technologies?; the misuse of offshore structures so as to assist the financing of terrorism; how to find, collect and analyse information on terrorists using Internet and leading-edge technology; confiscation and recovery of terrorists assets; the role of financial intelligence and the use of technology in CFT; cooperation between law enforcement and private sector; CFT technical assistance needs in transition countries.

Agenda

- A series of trainings, workshops and anti-corruption seminars for public relations officers from law enforcement agencies and investigative journalists was organised in Chisinau from 7 to 10 October 2008. The events were scheduled as follows:
7 October 2008 – Assessment visit and working group meeting for drawing up the communication strategy of the public prosecutor’s service;
8 October 2008 – Training for investigative journalists on understanding the conflict of interest– a tool for media in uncovering corruption: why it matters and how investigative journalists can make the best use of it
9 October 2008 - Training for law enforcement representatives on public communication;
10 October 2008 – Workgroup meeting on developing guidelines for investigative journalists and TV Public debate on the role of the prevention of corruption and the impact of corruption in the education system.
Outline of the meetings: scope and objectives of the communication strategy; structure and main principles of the communication strategy; communication channels (internal, external, inter-institutional communication); methods and means of implementing the communication strategy; monitoring and evaluation of the communication strategy; how the concept of conflict of interest is helping journalists to keep officials accountable; main principles of the conflict of interest and its regulation in Europe and what impact it has on the work of journalists; Moldovan situation in the conflict of interest, asset disclosure and access to information; case study on public information access for journalists.

Agenda

- Study visit to FIUs: the participants visited Vienna (13 October) Bratislava (14 October) and Budapest (16 October 2008). The aim of the visit was: to exchange experience, establish direct contacts with Egmont FIUs and thus promote Moldovan FIU within the Egmont community; and, to discuss with the UNODC goCase project team the possibility of a deployment of the goCase software in the CCCEC.

Agenda

- 3rd Seminar on the training programme on media relations for public relations officers from law enforcement agencies (20-22 October 2008, Chisinau).
With the participation of: PR officers from the Center for Combating Economic Crimes and Corruption; the General and Anticorruption Prosecutor's Office from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and CoE experts.

Agenda

- 2nd Anti-corruption train of trainers’ course for public officials from local public administration “Introducing Corruption Proofing as a Preventive Measure for Local Public Administration” (23-24 October 2008, Chisinau)
This activity supported the implementation of the GRECO recommendations. It ensues that, as a drawback, the 5th GRECO recommendation, which stipulates the adoption of the code of conduct for public servants and its circulation among public servants and the public at large, was only partially implemented.
With the participation of: the Chief of the Prevention Unit from the Center for Combating Economic Crimes and Corruption; the Director of the Center for Analyses and Prevention of Corruption.
Main aspects dealt with: qualification of corruption and related offences; conflict of interests; professional ethics of civil servants; preventing corruption in local administration through peer evaluations; risk assessment methodology; corruption proofing methodology and its applicability in the work of local public administration; case studies; national legislation on corruption proofing of normative acts and the best practices in implementation; workshops on the corruption proofing methodology and the risk factors; petitions and requests for access to information; settlement procedures by local public authorities and administrative courts.

Agenda and List of participants

- 4th Mission on risk assessment for Judiciary and NIJ “Strengthening the Integrity of the Judiciary in the Republic of Moldova through Risk Assessment and Implementation of Integrity Plans” (27- 30 October 2008, Cahul, Balti and Chisinau)
The main topic of the meeting was the evaluation of the existing preventive mechanisms of the court and/or evaluation of the vulnerability to corruption.

Agenda

- “Train the Trainer Program for the Module “Corruption Risk Assessment in Public Institutions” (28-29 October 2008, Chisinau)

Agenda

- Training for Moldovan FIU on exchange of information with Egmont and non-Egmont FIUs (31 October 2008, Chisinau)

MOLICO experts have developed a guide for the Moldovan FIU on information exchange. The training provided the latter with explanations on the use of this guide. As a result, the FIU compliance with Egmont Group, FATF, Council of Europe requirements in the realm of information exchange will be enhanced

Agenda

Our activities in September 2008

- Study visit to the Joint Vienna Institute for the purpose of an AML/CFT training course for criminal justice officials (1-5 September 2008, Vienna)

- Anti-corruption train of trainers’ course for 40 public officials from local public administration (11-12 September 2008, Chisinau)

- Conference on information exchange between FIUs and the Workshop on data security for FIU (18-19 September 2008,Vadul lui Voda, Moldova)

- 2nd Regional Conference of Financial Intelligence Units (29-30 September 2008, Miedzeszyn (Poland)

- Methodology on Corruption Proofing to be presented at GRECO session (9-13 June 2008, Strasbourg)
During the 38th GRECO Plenary Meeting the Moldovan delegation made a presentation on the anticorruption expertise of draft legislative and regulatory acts, on 12 June 2008.

The presentation was made by Ms Mariana Kalughin, Chief of the Directorate for Legislation and Anticorruption expertise of the Centre to Combat Economic Crimes and Corruption and Ms Galina Bostan, Director of the NGO, Centre for Analyses and Prevention of Corruption.

Moldovan representatives presented national experience in this field, including legislative framework, objectives and stages of expertise, corruption proofing methodology as a result of cooperation between the state body empowered by law to carry out the expertise and a non-governmental organisation, active in this field.

The implementation of the corruption proofing methodology of draft legislative acts started in Moldova in 2006 with assistance of the Joint Project of the Council of Europe and the European Commission against Corruption, Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing in the Republic of Moldova (MOLICO).

Presentation on the methodology on corruption proofing

- Efficient monitoring, coordination and management of the anti-corruption strategy ensured and annual action plans available