In the framework of the joint Council of Europe and EU Technical Support Instrument (TSI) Projects in the area of anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT), and upon request from the participating countries, the Council of Europe’s Economic Crime and Cooperation Division organised a three-day training course on Strategic Analysis for FIUs, in person in Tallinn from 6th to 8th November 2023.
The main objective of this training course was to develop the practical skills of the members of the Estonian FIU, as well as other relevant authorities, in the area of Strategic Analysis of money laundering and terrorism financing. In addition, it aimed to enhance the understanding of representatives of the Slovak FIU on Strategic Analysis, as they were invited to the training course in Tallinn, as part of the collaboration between different TSI Projects with common topics of focus.
The event gathered 22 practitioners including 11 members of the Estonian FIU, 5 representatives from other Estonian authorities, namely the Estonian Financial Inspection, the Police, the Tax and Customs Board and the Ministry of Interior, 5 representatives from the Slovak FIU, as well as one contributor from the German FIU’s Strategic Analysis department, in addition to international Council of Europe experts with relevant practical experience. The direct sharing of experience among these different European countries, in the positive learning environment offered by the course’s set-up, proved to add significant value to the training process.
The training approach was designed to be practical and interactive, with a combination of dynamic lectures and hands-on exercises to “learn by doing”. It aimed to prepare participants to apply a critical thinking methodology and use dedicated methods and tools (including IT tools) to develop effective strategic analysis processes and products. This training format used creative types of practical exercises and challenges in order to lead the groups of trainees to think “out of the box”, at a higher strategic level, for the purpose of conducting effective strategic analysis based on different situations and types of information and instructions. Participants engaged actively in practical work and took advantage of the opportunities offered for questions and substantive discussions targeted to their specific context.
Besides reinforcing the importance of a critical and creative thinking approach, the course also covered specific processes and tools for strategic analysis – including a detailed presentation of the current German FIU’s system and tools under use. Estonia and Slovakia were also given the opportunity to present their respective current status and plans for the development of their Strategic Analysis Functions, which further enriched the discussion with targeted forward-looking advice.
Feedback from participants in the training shows that the knowledge conveyed and the interaction with the Council of Europe’s experts added value to their strategic analysis work and institutional development processes. It allowed them to take a bird eye’s view over their current working methods in this area and explore concrete ways of improving them.
For both countries, the training contents also resonated with their ongoing or upcoming National Risk Assessment processes in the area of AML/CFT, and helped reflect on the relation between risk assessment and strategic analysis, and how to optimise the synergies between these two processes.
This event was organised in the framework of the joint TSI Project on “Strengthening of the Estonian AML framework” which is funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe.
