CEREAC calls for stronger cross-border cooperation to recover stolen assets
CEREAC Executive Director Dr Susan Kinyeki (left) with EACC Senior Legal Officer in the Asset Recovery Department, Ms Grace Maina, during the 4th COMESA–International Relations Society of Kenya (IRSK) Annual Conference in Nairobi.
13:11:2026: African countries need stronger cross-border cooperation to trace illicit financial flows and recover proceeds of crime, experts have said during a regional conference in Nairobi.
The challenge featured prominently during a plenary session led by the Africa Anti-Corruption Studies and Research Centre (CEREAC) at the 4th COMESA–International Relations Society of Kenya (IRSK) Annual Conference, held from November 11 to 13, 2026.
The November 13 session examined the role of anti-corruption authorities in combating illicit financial flows and enhancing asset recovery across Africa.
Moderated by CEREAC Executive Director Dr Susan Kinyeki, the discussion brought together experts from the financial, legal, judicial and asset recovery sectors.
The panellists included Mercy Buku, a senior counsel and banking and digital financial services expert; Justice Duncan Gaswaga of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights; Julius Muraya, an adviser to the Zambian government and representative of the Basel Institute on Governance; and Grace Maina, a senior legal officer in the Asset Recovery Department at Kenya’s Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC).
The experts examined the difficulties authorities face in tracing and recovering assets, particularly when illicit funds are transferred across borders and investigations require cooperation from foreign jurisdictions.
They identified mutual legal assistance (MLA) as an important mechanism for obtaining evidence, information and support from other countries in cross-border investigations.
However, differences in legal systems, delays in responding to requests and inadequate coordination among jurisdictions can complicate investigations and frustrate efforts to recover stolen assets.
The discussion also explored how digital financial services and emerging technologies are changing the financial crime landscape, creating new challenges for authorities seeking to track and prevent the movement of illicit funds.
Participants raised practical questions about financial investigations and asset recovery, highlighting the need for closer collaboration among investigative agencies, financial institutions, prosecutors and judicial authorities.
Speaking during the conference’s opening plenary on November 12, Dr Kinyeki emphasized the importance of strong regional institutions, effective governance and accountability in strengthening Africa’s resilience amid shifting global political and economic dynamics.
The conference, held under the theme, “Harnessing Africa’s Continental and Regional Institutions for Peace, Resilience and Transformation Amid a Fragmenting Global Order,” brought together diplomats, government officials, academics and policy practitioners to discuss regional integration, economic security, peace and governance.
The discussions highlighted the importance of effective regional cooperation in ensuring that stolen public resources can be traced and recovered, rather than remaining beyond the reach of national authorities.
