PROJECT FICHE

Transcription

1 PROJECT FICHE TO ACTION PROGRAMME 2005 FOR THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA Title Combating money laundering (phase II) Total cost EC contribution: 1.5 million (approx) Aid Method Project approach -Indirect Centralised Management DAC-code Sector General Government Services 1. RATIONALE 1.1. Strategic framework The project will directly address MIP section related to fight against organised crime, in particular the objective to improve the capacity of combating financial crimes in particular through strengthening of the Directorate against Money Laundering in the Ministry of Finance. In addition, the project will support European Partnership s medium-term priority to reinforce the fight against economic and financial crime (including money-laundering and counterfeiting of currencies) and fraud as well as improve the related national legislation. The proposed actions will also reinforce the implementation of the Article 77 of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement referring to co-operation in the area of combating money laundering Lessons learnt Initial advisory support to the disruption of money-laundering activities has been deployed in July It is therefore too early to be fully appraised of lessons learnt. However, it is apparent that successful disruption of money laundering requires a coherent and comprehensive legislative base, and the development, adoption and rigorous implementation of standard operating procedures. Ongoing support across all identified priorities will be required to ensure that progress made is not temporary or transient. It is also imperative that the Government provides adequate resources and manpower to implement new legislation in this area. This has been a factor on the antimoney-laundering programme under CARDS Complementary actions This assistance will complement other EC projects in the broader area of fight against organised crime, in particular the interventions related to the police reform (funded under CARDS ). This is particularly vital with respect to inter-agency procedures and co-operation. More specifically, EC has allocated funds under CARDS 2002 and 2003 programmes to provide institutional capacity building and equipment for the Directorate for Money Laundering Prevention (DMLP). The first phase of the project, funded under CARDS 2002, is currently under implementation by the Council of Europe, delivering advisory support to DMLP. The CARDS 2003 project will provide DMLP with equipment necessary to perform its functions. Moreover, the project will complement the interventions undertaken by the CARDS Regional Programme Development of reliable and functioning policing systems and enhancing of combating main criminal activities and police co-operation. Annual Action Programme for 2005 for Community Assistance to fyr Macedonia Money Laundering 1

2 USAID has indicated intention to support the development of operational capacity within the newly formed Financial Police Donor coordination The project is fully harmonised with other EU interventions, notably in the fields of Police Reform, support to the Police Academy, and planned assistance to the Public Prosecutor service. EU Member States and other donors active in the general area of Rule of Law have been consulted in development of this project proposal. 2. COUNTRY CONTEXT 2.1. Cooperation related policy of beneficiary country The Government of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia revised the Law of Money Laundering Prevention to enhance measures for detecting and prosecuting money laundering activities. The revised Law was formally adopted in July At the centre of the new Law is the establishment of a Directorate for Money-Laundering Prevention (DMLP), residing within the Ministry of Finance. The main provisions of the Law set out the competencies and responsibilities of the new DMLP in investigating and reporting on financial crime. The new Law also sets out supervisory mechanisms for the different financial sectors, all of which are obliged to notify the DMLP of financial transactions and make interventions as requested. Under the new arrangements, the National Bank has responsibility for supervision of banks, exchange offices and other service providers for money transfer. The Ministry of Finance oversees the insurance sector; the Securities and Exchange Commission supervises the stock exchange; and the Public Revenue Office covers all other financial institutions, including trade companies, venture capital etc Sector context The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has been assessed to have poor capacity to detect, investigate and disrupt a whole range of organised crime, including moneylaundering offences. However, there is a willingness on the part of the national authorities to now seriously confront these issues. With the assistance of international experts, the Law of Money Laundering Prevention was revised and subsequently adopted by Parliament in July This was an important first step towards addressing the problems in this sector and was a contributory factor to the admission of the DMLP of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia into the Egmont Group 1 of Independent Financial Intelligence Units. Under the new Law, the DMLP should collect, process, analyse and disseminate data obtained by banks, financial institutions, legal entities etc. Where appropriate, it should prepare and submit reports to the competent authorities where there are grounds for suspicion of money laundering and other financial crimes. The Directorate currently consists eight officers with a Director, based in the Ministry of Finance and is in need for assistance in order to be able to fully function in its new role 1 The Egmont Group brings together 58 national Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs). It works to foster their development and information exchange to overcome the obstacles preventing cross-border information sharing. Annual Action Programme for 2005 for Community Assistance to fyr Macedonia Money Laundering 2

3 As well as the Ministry of Finance, the DMLP actively engages with a range of other government departments and agencies including the Ministry of Interior, Public Prosecution, Customs, and the Financial Police. Furthermore, the Directorate is at the centre of information flows coming from the various financial institutions responsible for the regulation or supervision of the banking and insurance sectors and the stock exchange. These institutions are, respectively, the National Bank, Public Revenue Office, and Securities and Exchange Commission. The DMLP has the power to request information from these institutions and other state bodies as it decides. It can also propose new legislation or amendments to existing laws relating directly or indirectly to the prevention of money laundering and financing terrorism. In the context of international cooperation, the DMLP may, at their request and under condition of reciprocity, submit data to counterpart bodies in other countries in the combat against cross-border money laundering and financing terrorism. In this vein, the Directorate also has the powers to initiate and conclude agreements with other countries as well as relevant international organisations. 3. DESCRIPTION 3.1. Objectives Overall objective: To contribute to the establishment of a fully functioning system to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing as well as to enable the authorities of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to co-operate internationally in accordance with European and international standards. Specific objectives: - To assist the DMLP to develop and consolidate its capacity to exercise its functions in accordance with the new Law of Money Laundering Prevention. - To assist and support the implementation of effective mechanisms to ensure cooperation between the DMLP, reporting institutions, law enforcement, criminal justice and regulatory authorities in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia Expected results and main activities Expected results: - Legislation related to prevention of money laundering, including primary law, secondary legislation, regulations and endorsed operating procedures, should be considered completed at the end of the project. - DMLP has the capacity to undertake and efficiently perform its responsibilities. (The precise results of this project will be specified by the ongoing assistance funded under CARDS 2002.) Main activities: The advisory support currently provided to the DMLP and reporting institutions by the CARDS 2002 project should be maintained after its completion planned for December The proposed project will represent the second phase of the current advisory support. Key project components include: - assistance in drafting and passing legislation and regulations compatible and in line with norms and standards prevalent in EU Member States; - assistance in the definition of training requirements, delivery of training and/or supervision of the delivery of training for the DMPL and reporting institutions; and - assistance in the specification of procedural and technical solutions to operational requirements, identification of further equipment needs. Annual Action Programme for 2005 for Community Assistance to fyr Macedonia Money Laundering 3

4 3.3. Stakeholders The Directorate for Money Laundering Prevention within the Ministry of Finance, National Bank, Public Revenue Service, reporting institutions, enforcement apparatus of Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Finance, Public Prosecutor Special Group for Organised Crime, and associated structures Risks and assumptions Risk/assumption Likelihood L/M/H Impact L/M/H Political will of the national authorities to combat money laundering not maintained. L H Adequate capacity in terms of staff, funding, premises and equipment not allocated to DMLP. M H Counter Measures Appropriate level of political dialogue is exercised on part of international community. As above, making it clear to Government that any donor assistance is conditional on input from Government side Conditionalities National authorities must respond adequately to the advisory input of the preceding technical assistance project in support of the DMLP. There must be a quantifiable progress in the amount of secondary legislation and procedures adopted. Reporting systems and procedures, to be implemented under the related CARDS 2003 project, must be installed and training completed Crosscutting issues The project complements the work relating to police training and broader police reform. Moreover, there are linkages to existing projects in the areas of public service reform, in particular the area of public procurement. 4. IMPLEMENTATION ISSUES 4.1. Implementation method Indirect Centralised Management 4.2. Budget and calendar Indicative budget breakdown million Total budget 1.5m (approx) Budget by project components: Technical assistance 1.5m (approx) It is envisaged that the project will be implemented through a Twinning Arrangement with a Member State. However, if found more appropriate, a service contract or direct grant agreement to a Member State could also be considered. The expected project duration is 24 months Procurement and award of grants procedures All contracts implementing the financing agreement must be awarded and implemented in accordance with the procedures and standard documents laid down and published by the Commission for the implementation of external operations, in force at the time of the launch of the procedure in question. Annual Action Programme for 2005 for Community Assistance to fyr Macedonia Money Laundering 4

5 All programme estimates must respect the procedures and standard documents laid down by the Commission, in force at the time of the adoption of the programme estimates in question. All projects should be implemented in line with EU competition (including State aid) principles Performance monitoring The EAR Programme Managers responsible for this programme are the first level of regular monitoring and quality control, with inputs and support from the Operations Coordinator and Head of Centre. The EAR Monitoring Team in line with bi-annual monitoring plans for the operational centre - will submit monitoring reports over the programme s life cycle, identifying issues requiring management attention, and assessing efficiency as well as progress towards the achievement of the programme s outputs, objectives and expected impact. For service contracts, consultants/experts are required to produce reports at inception, interim and final phases, in order to show progress against the targets identified in the relevant terms of reference. As per the Twinning Manual, Twinning Projects will be the subject of quarterly monitoring on the basis of reports submitted by the Twinning Project Leaders as well the results of Steering Committee Meetings. Following receipt of the 2nd Quarterly Progress Report a systematic review of the Twinning will be undertaken by the European Agency for Reconstruction in consultation with the Twinning Partners. The review may lead to reorientation of the Twinning Project or, in extreme cases, withdrawal of financing (i.e. termination of the project). Key indicators for measuring progress: - Rate and extent of presentation, adoption and practical implementation of legislation, regulations and operating procedures. - At a practical level, a key indicator of project impact would be an increase in the number of suspicious transactions reported and subsequently prosecuted Evaluation and audit The programme may be evaluated at the interim, final or ex-post stages under the supervision of EAR Evaluation Unit - in line with the Agency s Evaluation Guidelines, as approved by the EAR Governing Board, and Annual Evaluation Programme. Evaluation of Twinning Projects will be based upon progress in achieving the benchmarks and mandatory results laid out in the work-plans for the Twinning Projects. The programmes may be audited by Court of Auditors - in line with the standard European Commission procedures. All service contractors and beneficiaries of Twinning Grant contracts will be required to submit audit certificates with their requests for final payment in accordance with the requirements of the Practical Guide to contract procedures for external assistance financed from the general budget of the European Communities and the Twinning Manual. Annual Action Programme for 2005 for Community Assistance to fyr Macedonia Money Laundering 5