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SERPAZ – Strengthening Ecuador’s response to the security crisis and building resilient communities
Project
Published on
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Project start date
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Status
Ongoing
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Project end date
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Financing amount (Euro)
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1.7m for Expertise France
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Country and region
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Ecuador, The Americas
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Funders
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Partners
The objective of the SERPAZ project is to strengthen national capabilities to combat money laundering and recover the financial assets of organised criminal groups in Ecuador.
A major security crisis in Ecuador
According to the Ecuadorian Organised Crime Observatory, money laundering is the second most widespread criminal activity in Ecuador, just behind drug trafficking. Financial crimes are seldom thoroughly investigated and the majority of cases do not continue beyond the initial stages. This is due to the lack of resources, institutional isolation, and the limited use of financial intelligence tools.
$123 billion involved in money laundering
According to the Mutual Evaluation Report of the Financial Action Task Force of Latin America (GAFILAT) published in 2022, Ecuador has an adequate legal framework in terms of anti-money laundering and asset recovery (AML/AR). However, it faces limitations in its operational implementation due to the lack of resources, insufficient coordination, and weaknesses in the risk-based approach.
Experts estimate that money laundering accounted for between 2.5 and 6.3% of the country’s GDP in 2023, representing $122.76 billion. This increases the outreach of organised crime, which complicates efforts to restore security and stability in the country.
SERPAZ programme – A European initiative for security and resilience in Ecuador
An international consortium, composed of European technical cooperation agencies, Ecuadorian institutions, along with institutions from the Netherlands and the Port of Antwerp, has developed the SERPAZ programme to address these challenges. The objective is to strengthenEcuador’s resilience and enable it to overcome the security crisis related to drug trafficking and organised crime.
This programme is based on four thematic lines of action. It is implemented through a holistic approach focused on:
- Improving the institutional architecture
- Implementing legal and procedural reforms
- Strengthening capacities for financial intelligence as well as the judicial system
FIAP is responsible for the overall leadership of the programme and coordinates the action between the partners. Expertise France is a partner of FIAP for the first project component, which aims to strengthen the country’s capacity to combat money laundering and recover financial assets from transnational organised crime.
France a strategic partner of Ecuador
France is supporting Ecuador in its fight against organised crime and terrorism, in line with European Union priorities. Recognised for its expertise in the areas of anti-money laundering and international cooperation, it is providing key technical assistance through Expertise France. This is helping to build a sustainable response to the security issues.
“Anti-money laundering security”: Action to combat money laundering and recover financial assets
The first line of action of the SERPAZ programme is “anti-money laundering security”, focusing on the fight against money laundering and the recovery of financial assets from organised crime. It is financed by the Delegation of the European Union to Ecuador and implemented jointly by Expertise France and FIAP. We are working closely with the Ecuadorian public and private institutions involved in this issue.
Our action aims to protect citizens and preserve their livelihoods by strengthening the coordination capacities and powers of investigation of governmental law enforcement institutions, judicial authorities and the Public Prosecutor. Specialised training will be organised on methods of investigation and prosecution, as well as on asset recovery.
In addition, the SERPAZ project will help identify appropriate solutions for improving alert systems and enhancing communication between the various operators involved in processing data related to financial crime. This will involve establishing a cooperative information system and developing or acquiring appropriate software and technologies, in accordance with international best practice.
Through this action and a cooperative approach, Expertise France is assisting the Government of Ecuador with its efforts to address these challenges by improving the governance and resilience of the security sector.
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