In the context of USAID’s FOTI Timor Leste programme, ICAR has been requested to assist local counterparts (the Attorney General Office, the Central Bank and the Anti-Corruption Commission) in analyzing and identifying the different stages of investigation and adjudication of money laundering cases; identifying legislative and/or procedural shortcomings that hinder the investigation and adjudication of money laundering in East Timor; and recommending inter-institutional coordination mechanisms for streamlining the investigation and adjudication of such cases.

At the upcoming UN Conference of States Parties (CoSP) to the UNCAC in Panama City during 25-29 November 2013, the Basel Institute will officially launch its most recent publication, Emerging Trends in Asset Recovery (see above under “Recent publication”). The book will be distributed at our information booth where we look forward to welcoming you.

During the CoSP, the Institute will also be hosting and participating in a series of workshops, notably:

On 12 May 2014, at the 23rd Session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) in Vienna, ICAR joined experts from the International Association of Prosecutors and the Korean Institute on Criminology to support a workshop on challenges of international cooperation in criminal matters.

In the context of ICAR's one-year multi-phase training programme in financial investigation and asset recovery for the Indonesian Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), funded by USAID/Management Systems International, ICAR has developed a series of new training modules jointly with the International Anti-Corruption Resource Centre (IACRC).

On 24 April, the Ukraine Anti-Corruption Action Centre, jointly with Ukrainska Prvada & GOPAC Ukraine, hosted an international conference to discuss and identify challenges relating to the recovery of assets stolen by former President Yanukovych and his associates, and thereby to initiate a (inter-) national dialogue to address these challenges. ICAR spoke on modalities for the return of stolen assets, alongside senior representatives from the Ukraine government and Canada, the European Union, Switzerland and the US, as well as specialist civil society organisations.

On April 2-9, ICAR hosted its first international workshop on the use of virtual currency to launder money. Held at the University of Basel, Switzerland, the workshop brought together public and private sector practitioners from countries such as France, Liechtenstein, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The workshop circled around a case study presented by the FBI, presentations by ICAR experts and interactive group discussions to identify particular challenges and potential solutions for law enforcement.

In June 2014, in the context of the Security Fund of the Swiss-Romanian Cooperation Programme, ICAR and the Superior Council of Magistracy of Romania delivered a 5-day training programme aimed at further developing the skills of members of the Romania National Anti-Corruption Directorate (NAD) to successfully investigate and prosecute international corruption and money laundering cases and recover stolen assets.

ICAR is partnering with two non-for-profit organisations in Romania, the Journalism Development Network and the Rise Project, to launch the 3-year "Mapping and Visualizing Cross-Border Crime Project.”

With funding support from the Swiss–Romanian Cooperation Programme, the objective is to enhance the investigative and research skills of journalists, civil society activists and law enforcement in Romania to detect and uncover local and cross-border illicit networks and to increase the exposure of organised crime structures as well as their modus of operandi.

At the request of the Kuwait Anti-Corruption Authority (KACA), ICAR is currently preparing and developing a one-year multi-component capacity building programme in asset recovery and financial investigation for the KACA.

In the context of the Swiss-Bhutanese cooperation framework (“DG and Democratic Governance Programme”), which seeks to consolidate Bhutan’s democratic institutions and practices, ICAR delivered a further five-day training workshop in financial investigation and asset recovery to 28 experts from the Judiciary, Office of the Attorney General, Anti-Corruption Commission, Royal Bhutan Police, Drug Regulatory Authority, Department of Revenue and Custom, Bhutan National Legal Institute, the Royal Insurance Corporation of Bhutan and the Royal Audit Authority.