Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) involve illegal or illicit financial transfers across borders, such as money laundering, tax abuse, and terrorist financing. They pose a significant threat, especially to developing economies. Such flows lead to revenue losses, particularly in Africa, weakening democratic institutions, decreasing private investments, and escalating inequalities.
International organizations like the G20, World Bank, IMF, the European Commission (EC) and the African Union Commission (AUC) are paying keen attention to IFFs and TIFFs, striving to define, address, and mitigate them.
In the Joint Vision for 2030 adopted by political leaders at the 6th European Union-African Union Summit of February 2022, Heads of State stressed their commitment to jointly develop strategic capabilities to fight complex and context-specific IFFs. Following this call, the EU and
its Member States have launched a Team Europe Initiative directly contributing to SDG 16.4 of the UN 2030 Agenda. This initiative aligns with global efforts, including the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and AU frameworks, aiming to reduce IFFs from tax evasion, avoidance, corruption, and
criminal activities.