Saudi Arabia confirms that illegal financial flows continue to pose a threat to the financial stability of States

18-05-2019 Media in \New York
Saudi Arabia stressed that illegal financial flows continue to pose a major threat to the financial stability of States and to the achievement of their national goals for sustainable development.
This came in the Kingdom’s address to the United Nations during the High-level Meeting on International Cooperation to Combat Illegal Financial Flows and the Promotion of Good Practices on Asset Return, delivered by the Chairman of the Finance and Economic Committee, First Secretary Bandar Al Nahdi.
“Illegal financial flows are constantly increasing beyond detection, distorting macroeconomic stability, creating severe complications for developing countries that can not afford more burdens and depriving them of the resources needed to advance their economic, social and cultural rights, In particular the right to development “.
He stressed the urgent need for developing countries and countries with economies in transition to repatriate assets of illicit origin, consistent with the principles of the United Nations Convention against Corruption, in order to prepare and finance development projects in accordance with their national priorities, noting that illegal financial flows played a role In reducing resources to finance sustainable development, and negatively affect the economic, social and political stability of countries, particularly developing countries.
The Chairman of the Finance and Economic Committee pointed out that the measurement of illegal financial flows posed a challenge, particularly in the absence of any instrument or process that effectively measured the associated clandestine activities, and that the return of funds from illicit sources to their countries of origin required coordination and cooperation Between the requesting and requesting States, including between the competent authorities, in particular the judicial authorities, under common responsibility, to facilitate effective international cooperation for the rapid recovery of assets of illicit origin.
He added that the United Nations Plan for Sustainable Development 2030 stressed the importance of significantly reducing the illicit flows of funds and weapons by 2030. The Addis Ababa Plan of Action, adopted at the Third International Conference on Financing for Development, stressed in particular that measures to curb Illegal financial flows will be an integral part of achieving sustainable development, stressing the importance of cooperation in the principle of transparency among States in this regard and encouraging the various United Nations bodies to continue to work and to consider ways of addressing this phenomenon