Onyeama, Fowler, others for UN parley on illicit financial flows

Foreign Affairs minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, Executive Chairman, Tunde Fowler,Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and Chairman, Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) Professor Bolaji Olufunmileyi Owasanoye will join other international figures for a  global conference on how to contain Illicit Financial Flows (IFF).

                                                                                                                                                           Maria Fernanda Espinosa President of the United Nations General Assembly who invited the trio to the event scheduled to kick off Wednesday in New York, said the high-level meeting will focus on International Cooperation to combat illicit financial flows and strengthen good practices on asset return.

A statement from FIRS explained that Fowler who is also the first Vice Chairman of the United Nations Committee of Tax Experts will also be sharing the African perspective of IFF as he also the Chairman of the African Tax Administration’s Forum ATAF.

Maria said that the UN General Assembly in its resolutions 72/202 and 73/222, entitled “Promotion of international cooperation to combat lllicit Financial Flows and strengthen good practices on asset returns to foster sustainable development” mandated the UN General Assembly to hold the meeting.

Scheduled for the Trusteeship Council Chamber, United Nations Headquarters in New York, the meeting will kick off with an opening segment, two interactive panel discussions, a plenary segment for general discussion and a closing segment.

The two interactive panels will discuss these themes:Taking stock on achievements of contemporary efforts to combat illicit

financial flows and moving on and a global architecture to combat illicit financial flows and strengthen recovery and return of illicit assets.

This meeting is being organized to take stock of progress made and ways to address subsisting challenges to reduce illicit financial flows and promote best practices in asset recovery and repatriation, as an important means to support the timely implementation of the 2030 Agenda, in cooperation with all relevant stakeholders.

Former South African President Thambo Mbeki met with Fowler, ICPC Chair, Head of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Presidency Officials, Officials of the Ministry of Justice and other Heads of Nigerian anti-corruption agencies last year in Abuja to review the African response to IFF and chat the way forward.

Mbeki headed the African Union High Level Panel (AUHLP) IFF review African  response and chart the way forward.

The FIRS in partnership with the Presidential Advisory Committee on Against Corruption (PACAC) and the EFCC have organised two high level events for the recovery of illegal proceeds of tax evasion.