EU and Council of Europe Action against Economic Crime in Albania, in cooperation with the Inter-Institutional Working Group on Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing organised a consultative roundtable to discuss the draft National Strategy on Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing for the period 2024-2030. This roundtable brought together representatives of responsible public authorities, key stakeholders and international partners to discuss Albania’s National Strategy and its Action Plan.

The goal of this roundtable was to gather feedback and insights from stakeholders to refine this strategic document and to properly address the main challenges that Albania faces in the money laundering and terrorist financing area. 

In his opening remarks, the Director of Financial Intelligence Agency, Ervin Koçi, appreciated the expertise provided by the European Union and Council of Europe in improving this strategic document, which will enhance national safety, enable competent authorities to understand and mitigate risks effectively, and strengthen inter-institutional cooperation through effective measures. 

Lenka Vitkova, Head of Operations in the EU Delegation to Albania, stressed the importance of aligning Albania’s legislation with the EU acquis and priorities, particularly at this moment, as the EU reinforced the rules on anti-money laundering and terrorism financing, by setting up a new European Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AMLA) in Frankfurt.

This activity was organized jointly by the Inter-Institutional Technical Working Group (ITWG) led by Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA) and the Action against Economic Crime in Albania, within the framework of the European Union/Council of Europe joint Programme Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye (Horizontal Facility III).