Context
Latin America is experiencing a rise in organised crime and, with it, an increase in illicit financial flows. Among the most important drivers are illegal mining, illegal deforestation, tax evasion, corruption and human trafficking. The consequences for political, economic and social stability in Latin America are far-reaching: trust in the state, democracy and financial systems is eroding, investment is falling and sustainable development in the region is being undermined.
The countries are working hard to prevent illicit financial flows, curb the underlying crime and recover illicitly acquired assets.
Objective
The institutional capacities to curb illicit financial flows in Latin America are strengthened.
Approach
The Financial Action Task Force of Latin America (Grupo de Acción Financiera de Latinoamérica, GAFILAT) supports its 18 member states in improving their systems, with the aim of reducing money laundering and the financing of terrorism. The project works with GAFILAT to achieve this goal and trains its staff. For example, it supports the identification of money laundering risks. The project also conducts gender-sensitive regional studies and systematically identifies and analyses money laundering methods.
In addition, the project develops and tests good practices in Ecuador, Mexico and Peru. It conducts transnational studies on topics such as illegal mining, and supports the development and modernisation of digital tools. These enable authorities to access registers and information more quickly, and to pool and share them. Examples of such tools include search and cooperation platforms.
Last update: December 2025