Typologies
ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRADE AND FINANCIAL INVESTIGATIONS IN WEST AFRICA
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In the last five years, West Africa has emerged as a major source and transit hub in the global illegal wildlife trade (IWT).1 The industrial scale of the multi-tonne, multi-product seizures originating from West Africa clearly demonstrates that profit-driven organised crime groups are running the trade. Yet, while the significance of the region in global IWT flows is increasingly recognised, very little is known about the financial aspects of these criminal operations. Based on 89 interviews with key stakeholders in West and Central Africa, as well as a survey of 12 out of 17 financial intelligence units (FIUs) based in the member states of the Inter-Governmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA), this paper assesses the extent to which the financial dimensions of IWT are investigated in the region. It finds that no country in West Africa currently conducts routine parallel financial investigations in IWT cases.
April 2021