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story by Tichaona Wangotse
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s (RBZ) Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) is joining forces with the European Union (EU) to combat financial crimes.
Speaking recently at the Cyber Fraud Summit in Nyanga Montclair Hotel FIU Director General Oliver Chiperesa said the collaboration aims to establish a financial investigation curriculum at the police staff college .
Chiperesa emphasized the need for this partnership, stating that the police currently lack the expertise to fully investigate financial crimes. “We identified several high-risk areas in our periodic assessment; top on the list are tax evasion, corruption, illicit gold trade, and precious metals, as well as smuggling,” he explained.
The RBZ’s FIU has been working to enhance its capabilities to combat financial crimes. In 2022, the unit underwent significant expansion, doubling its workforce and diversifying its skill set to include expertise in IT and forensic auditing.
Chiperesa highlighted the importance of addressing financial crimes, citing the significant losses Zimbabwe has incurred due to illicit financial flows (IFFs). According to a recent report, Zimbabwe lost over $32 billion between 2000 and 2020 due to IFFs.
The partnership with the EU is expected to bolster Zimbabwe’s efforts to combat financial crimes. The EU has been actively involved in supporting countries in their fight against financial crimes, and this collaboration is seen as a significant step forward for Zimbabwe.
As Chiperesa noted, “It’s one thing to have a compliant legal framework, and it’s another thing to make sure the regime is being used effectively to fight money laundering”.The establishment of the financial investigation curriculum is expected to play a critical role in enhancing the capacity of law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute financial crimes effectively.
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