our work
Our strategy
Our 2020-2023 strategy aims to expand the actors engaged in asset recovery & push forward global debates
Sanctions Watch
Sanctions Watch documents the people subject to anti-corruption sanctions and provides in-depth research into their use
Investigate
Our investigate programme supports journalists to investigate illicit financial flows and asset recovery
What is cifar
CiFAR’s vision is a world where public officials are unable to steal public money and hide it overseas. Our mission is to end cross-border corruption and to ensure transparency and accountability in asset recovery. We do this through supporting civil society across the globe to be a strong and effective actor on stolen assets. We provide civil society with the skills, knowledge and network to advocate, campaign and investigate cases where public and private officials are complicit in the illicit removal of public goods to private ownership across country borders. We also ensure that civil society can be an active voice in ensuring the return and monitoring the use of confiscated stolen assets. We campaign against individuals and the structures that enable asset theft, we support cross-border civil society cooperation on asset recovery and we develop the expertise of civil society to be strong voices across the globe on asset theft.
our news and features
RUSSIAN ESCAPE INVESTIGATIONS – WEBINAR
Findings and lessons learnt for sanctions in Europe Online, 11 October 2023, 16:00 – 17:15 CEST (Berlin time) Register for the event Background Between autumn 2022 and June 2023 CiFAR and European Investigative Collaborations, with the support of OCCRP and thanks to IJ4EU and the National Endowment for Democracy, coordinated the Russian Escape investigations into Read more about RUSSIAN ESCAPE INVESTIGATIONS – WEBINAR[…]
Empowering Citizens to Combat Corruption: CiFAR Launches the Citizen Guide to Asset Recovery in Kenya
Corruption continues to be a pressing issue affecting countries worldwide, with citizens bearing the brunt of its detrimental consequences. Asset recovery plays a vital role in the fight against corruption, ensuring that stolen funds are returned to their rightful owners and reinforcing transparency and accountability within the nation. In Kenya, we are seeing growing amounts Read more about <strong>Empowering Citizens to Combat Corruption: CiFAR Launches the Citizen Guide to Asset Recovery in Kenya</strong>[…]
The Jersey Return: Public Participation and Transparency Lessons
The announcement of the Jersey return of GBP 3 million – the latest cross border return to Kenya – was welcomed with pomp and gladness by Kenyans in general, because these had been a long coming return! The signing and announcement of the Agreement for the recovery, transfer, repatriation, disposition and management of recovered asset Read more about The Jersey Return: Public Participation and Transparency Lessons[…]
FINANCIAL INVESTIGATIONS AS A FIRST STEP TO RECOVER SANCTIONED ASSETS
Is it possible to confiscate sanctioned assets and use them for public good? How to do this quickly and without compromising the rule of law? These are some of the questions that CiFAR has been trying to understand since the freezing of Tunisian, Egyptian and Ukrainian assets under the EU’s misappropriation sanctions. These questions became Read more about <strong>FINANCIAL INVESTIGATIONS AS A FIRST STEP TO RECOVER SANCTIONED ASSETS</strong>[…]
Statement of the CAPAR Civil Society Network at the Continental Symposium on AUCPCC, 20 Years After: Achievements and Prospects
Arusha, 10 July 2023 The CAPAR Civil Society Network, formed of civil society organisations across Africa and facilitated by CiFAR – Civil Forum for Asset Recovery, congratulates the African Union on the successful organisation of the “Continental Symposium on AUCPCC, 20 Years After: Achievements and Prospects”. The CAPAR Civil Society (CSO) Network was formed at Read more about <strong>Statement of the CAPAR Civil Society Network at the Continental Symposium on AUCPCC, 20 Years After: Achievements and Prospects</strong>[…]
100 civil society organizations around the world in defense of Civic Space in Angola demand new law on NGOs to be withdrawn
Press Release 100 civil society organizations around the world in defense of Civic Space in Angola demand new law on NGOs to be withdrawn 5 July 2023 100 civil society organizations worldwide signed a statement today against the “Estatuto das Organizações Não-Governamentais” (Status of non-governmental organisations), a new draft law regulating civil society in Angola Read more about <strong>100 civil society organizations around the world in defense of Civic Space in Angola demand new law on NGOs to be withdrawn</strong>[…]
#RussianEscape
Berlin, 26 June 2023 Today, investigative stories are being launched across Europe into the implementation of sanctions following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The investigation was coordinated by CiFAR and the EIC (European Investigative Collaboration) with the support of OCCRP and thanks to IJ4EU and NED, and published by Mediapart (France), Info Libre (Spain), and Read more about #RussianEscape[…]
Asset recovery data availability – small steps forward
The United Nations World Data Forum which builds a pathway to better data for sustainable development, and which took place in Hangzhou at the end of April, offered a moment to reflect on data availability across the Sustainable Development Goals framework, including SDG 16.4. As we have written before, there is currently no indicator that Read more about Asset recovery data availability – small steps forward[…]
Returning assets indirectly through third-party entities
Read our new report – Indirect Asset Return Through Third-Party Entities Indirect return mechanisms describe the practice of returning recovered money across borders indirectly via third-party entities that stand between cooperating governments. These entities might be called in to aid in the negotiations, as well as in the process of the distribution of the returned Read more about Returning assets indirectly through third-party entities[…]
Recovering assets through reconciliation agreements
Read our new report – Reconciliation agreements and asset recovery Reconciliation agreements are a way for states to recover assets obtained through corruption by entering into deals with persons involved in corruption, whereby money is given to the state in exchange for amnesty from prosecution for the original crime. For states involved in long and Read more about Recovering assets through reconciliation agreements[…]