Mauritius

Malawi hosts first regional workshop on managing seized assets

Crime must not pay, but what we recover must also be worth recovering. With these words, Charles Mhango, Malawi's Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, opened the first Regional Asset Management Workshop in Salima, Malawi, on 29 September 2026. Over two days, nearly 40 prosecutors, law enforcement representatives and asset management officers from Ghana, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, South Africa and Zambia worked with international experts on a practical question. How do you stop seized assets losing value while a criminal case makes its way through the courts? The workshop was organised by the Basel Institute's International Centre for Asset Recovery ICAR and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions of Malawi, led by Fostino Yankho Maele. Ben Nicholson, British Deputy High Commissioner and Development Director, and representatives of the Royal Norwegian Embassy also took part. Warm thanks to ICAR’s donors, in particular the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office FCDO and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation Norad , for funding this valuable meeting of minds. A shared challenge Criminal cases can take years. In that time, seized cars rust, buildings fall into disrepair and businesses collapse. When an asset loses its value, everyone loses. The state recovers less if the suspect is convicted, and the owner gets back less if they are acquitted. Practitioners increasingly understand that asset management is an essential part of asset recovery. The difficulty lies in the detail. - Resources are often limited, and laws do not always allow assets to be managed or sold before a case ends. - Essential good practices such as pre-seizure planning are still new in many places. - Complex assets such as companies, mines or petrol stations need specialist skills that prosecutors and police do not typically have. These problems are by no means unique to Africa. Elizabeth Andersen, Executive Director of the Basel Institute, reminded participants that practitioners everywhere face them. A representative of Ireland’s Criminal Assets Bureau reinforced the point with the country’s own experience of managing seized real estate. Learning from experience Participants were eager to share what had worked for them and what had not. The camaraderie among practitioners was evident, which kept the discussions dynamic and encouraged peer learning. Complex, income-generating assets came up again and again. One jurisdiction described managing a mine that was already struggling financially even before the price of its commodity fell sharply. Other delegations spoke about their efforts to ensure that tenants of seized properties paid rent to the state instead of to suspects. There were positive experiences too. In one jurisdiction, seized assets put up for auction sold for more than their initial asking prices. The countries represented at the workshop are now seeking to move towards specialised models and streamlined procedures for managing seized assets. No single model The clearest message from the two days was that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to asset management. A house, a fleet of tankers, a bank account and a crypto wallet each need different handling. What works in one legal system may not work in another. That gives African jurisdictions an opportunity. They can learn from shared experiences in the region and beyond, and build models and processes that suit their own needs and circumstances. Next steps The discussions will inform broad principles that participating jurisdictions can adapt to their own systems. A specialised focus group on managing seized cryptoassets is also launching under the Basel Institute’s Africa Crypto & Asset Recovery Network. Through our ICAR field experts in Africa and our international partners, we look forward to supporting the region’s asset management and recovery professionals as they develop the policies, laws and practices needed to manage criminal assets and recover maximum value for victims and the state. Learn more - Read the Malawi Ministry of Justice press release on the workshop. - See Rita Simões’ Quick Guide to Managing Seized and Confiscated Assets.

Are illicit enrichment laws an underused tool to target corruption? Yes, say practitioners

At a Basel Institute-hosted webinar on illicit enrichment on 30 June 2021, practitioners from Uganda, Kenya and Mauritius agreed that illicit enrichment laws have significant potential to help their countries – and others – target corruption and recover stolen assets. But, they say, significant hurdles still need to be overcome, especially in transnational cases. In a nutshell, illicit enrichment laws or unexplained wealth laws allow investigators and prosecutors to recover assets that have clearly not come from lawful sources without having to prove the specific criminal action that gave rise to these proceeds. As such, they are particularly useful to target corruption offences, where it is often difficult to point to an obvious victim or to a specific criminal act. So why aren’t they being used more often and more widely? Read on. About the event The panel discussion sought to explore what we can learn from countries that have introduced these types of laws around the world, what States should consider when introducing illicit enrichment legislation, and how to overcome challenges to its effective application. The event was also an opportunity to introduce a new open-access book on Illicit Enrichment: A Guide to Laws Targeting Unexplained Wealth written by Andrew Dornbierer and published by the Basel Institute in June 2021. Andrew Dornbierer spoke on the panel alongside: Phillip G. Kagucia, Assistant Director, Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, Kenya Paul Keyton and Preeya Raghoonundun, Director and Assistant Director, Integrity Reporting Service Agency, Mauritius Tom Walugembe, Asset Recovery Specialist, Basel Institute on Governance Jonathan Spicer, Senior Asset Recovery Specialist at the Basel Institute on Governance, moderated the event. The virtual event welcomed 140 live attendees. You can view it on YouTube here or listen to the audio recording. Introducing illicit enrichment Andrew Dornbierer began by outlining how illicit enrichment can be defined at a broad level as referring to a situation in which: “someone has enjoyed an amount of wealth that is not justified by reference to their lawful income.” He explained that an illicit enrichment law is one that targets this situation, and will empower a court to sanction someone for illicit enrichment without needing to see proof of any underlying or separate crime that gave rise to the enrichment. Andrew further explained that laws targeting illicit enrichment can be in both criminal formats i.e. in the form of a criminal offence or civil formats i.e. as an application process for a civil order for compensation . Significant variety across jurisdictions Tom Walugembe, Phillip G. Kagucia, and Preeya Raghoonundun explained the unique formats of the illicit enrichment laws in Uganda, Kenya and Mauritius respectively. While Uganda has implemented a criminal offence for illicit enrichment, contained in the primary anti-corruption law, Kenya and Mauritius have both enacted civil-procedure based laws. Civil actions under Kenya’s law are also outlined in the country’s primary anti-corruption act, but instead take the form of a civil order that can be made by courts to confiscate “unexplained assets”. In Mauritius, the civil action can be applied more broadly outside of an anti-corruption context. However, before the court action can be launched by the Integrity Reporting Service Agency, it must first receive approval from an independent board that assesses the strength of a potential case. Successes and overcoming hurdles The experts explained that while each of the countries has achieved some success in the enforcement of illicit enrichment laws, practitioners still face many hurdles in their efforts. For instance in Uganda, capacities regarding financial investigation abilities have hindered the strengths of certain cases. Meanwhile in Kenya, some misunderstandings regarding how the law should be investigated and applied have led to significant delays in the court – though these misunderstandings have been somewhat clarified as court cases have progressed. In Mauritius, Paul Keyton explained that the ability of respondents to take advantage of procedural loopholes, without consequences, can add severe delays to proceedings. Legal challenges to illicit enrichment To provide some further insight into the common legal challenges that illicit enrichment laws often face, Andrew Dornbierer discussed arguments that illicit enrichment laws contravene the presumption of innocence principle. This is a basis for many challenges around the world. He explained that while most courts admit that these laws run contrary to this principle, the prevailing view around the world is that this principle is not absolute in nature, and that illicit enrichment laws qualify as an acceptable deviation from this principle for a number of reasons. Tom Walugembe provided further insight on other legal arguments that often arise, specifically that illicit enrichment laws violate property rights as well as the principle against retroactive application, and explained how Ugandan courts have rejected both of these contentions. How does illicit enrichment work across borders? Attendees raised many interesting questions, especially regarding difficulties in freezing assets or obtaining evidence from abroad in the context of illicit enrichment cases. In response, Tom Walugembe noted that as many countries in Europe do not have illicit enrichment laws, there are likely to be issues regarding dual criminality that will affect efforts to obtain mutual legal assistance from these countries. Paul Keyton explained that in Mauritius, value-based provisions in the law may still facilitate asset recovery when it is impossible to confiscate goods from foreign states due to a reluctance in that country to cooperate. Learn more See Andrew Dornbierer’s quick guide to illicit enrichment, also available in French, Spanish and Portuguese. Learn more about our new book on Illicit Enrichment: A Guide to Laws Targeting Unexplained Wealth by Andrew Dornbierer. Click through to Amazon to purchase a print copy at cost price or visit illicitenrichment.baselgovernance.org to view or download the full book, technical guidance on source and application analysis, and a database of illicit enrichment laws around the world. Read a case study by Tom Walugembe on the landmark USD 1.25 million illicit enrichment case of Uganda vs. Geoffrey Kazinda in October 2020.

Ten-country Advanced Operational Analysis training offers chance to reflect on the effectiveness of AML systems

Twenty anti-corruption investigators and financial intelligence analysts from 10 African countries completed an intensive Advanced Operational Analysis course last week hosted by the Commonwealth Africa Anti-Corruption Centre CAACC . Delivered online by our International Centre for Asset Recovery ICAR training team, the workshop blended eLearning modules with live video sessions in which the participants worked together to solve a simulated corruption case. Enhancing mutual understanding The participants came from anti-corruption agencies and Financial Intelligence Units FIUs in Botswana, South Africa, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Kenya, Namibia, Mauritius, Zambia and Lesotho. As usual in ICAR training programmes, the multi-agency approach helped participants to better understand each other’s needs and roles. FIU analysts were encouraged to tailor their intelligence products to the needs of investigators in law enforcement agencies. In turn, investigators learnt how an FIU operates by taking the Operational Analysis eLearning module and solving the simulated case. By the end of the week, participants fully understood the value of breaking silos down, of exchanging information and coordinating their actions, nationally and regionally. Reflecting on FATF mutual evaluations The training was also an opportunity for the participants to reflect on the lessons learnt from the recent Financial Action Task Force FATF evaluations of Mauritius, Zambia and Botswana. These three countries have undergone an FATF fourth-round evaluation, which covers the effectiveness of national systems to combat money laundering and terrorist financing and not merely technical compliance with FATF Recommendations. The Basel AML Index, which assesses the risk of money laundering and terrorist financing around the world, has consistently noted that countries typically fall down the rankings when assessed with the new methodology. The participants together looked at ways to enhance effectiveness in the use of financial intelligence for money laundering investigations, as well as in investigations, prosecutions and the confiscation of assets. Impact and collaboration This impact-driven training aimed to provide participants with skills that are directly applicable in their daily work. We were happy to receive participants’ comments including “it touched on similarities of the case I am currently investigating” and “the financial analysis will improve the presentation of my case”. One participant commented that the training will “help me in investigating suspicious transaction reports that I recently received”. The Basel Institute has a long-standing relationship with the Botswana-based CAACC and has conducted previous workshops in 2017 and 2020. See our article about the 2020 workshop on Financial Investigations and Asset Recovery for more information about the CAACC and our fruitful collaboration. ICAR training in multiple languages To find out more about ICAR training programmes, please download our latest brochure in English, Spanish, French or Portuguese: English: Training programmes – Financial investigations and asset recovery Español: Programas de capacitación – Investigaciones financieras y recuperación de activos Français : Programmes de formation – Enquêtes financières et recouvrement d’avoirs Português: Programas de formação – Investigações financeiras e recuperação de activos

Regional training workshop for the Commonwealth Africa Anti-Corruption Centre

A regional training workshop for the Commonwealth Africa Anti-Corruption Centre has highlighted the importance of cross-border co-operation in solving corruption and asset recovery cases. During August 2017, experts from the International Centre for Asset Recovery ICAR conducted a regional training workshop in Botswana in collaboration with the Commonwealth Africa Anti-Corruption Centre CAACC for 35 investigators and legal officers of Anti-Corruption Agencies in eight Commonwealth African countries: Botswana, Ghana, Lesotho, Kenya, Mauritius, Swaziland, Tanzania and Zambia. The regional training initiative was co-financed by the African Development Bank, CAACC and the Basel Institute on Governance. The workshop aimed at providing a platform for inter-agency networking across regional borders as participants were divided into seven groups and encouraged to interact with one another in the interest of improving regional co-ordination and co-operation. Judge Lot Moroka of Botswana attended the final day of the workshop when the participants presented their findings in respect of the simulated financial investigation, which they were required to “investigate”. During his subsequent presentation on a “ Regional perspective of the problems and challenges posed by the investigation and prosecution of corruption cases ”, he also commented on these presentations, reinforcing the importance of addressing the elements of the offences charged. He congratulated the ICAR experts on the manner in which they had facilitated the training as it clearly allowed the participants to match relevant evidence to the elements. Corruption cases are lost because there is a failure at a procedural level to follow rules of evidence and procedure, and, at a substantive evidentiary level, to provide adequate evidence to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Engaging the private sector in Collective Action against corruption: A practical guide for anti-corruption agencies in Africa