The workshop, which was attended by representatives of the Attorneys-General`s Offices of Kenya and Uganda and the Attorney General, focused on requests for mutual legal assistance and extradition in cases of trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants. The AMLA creates a category of “responsible persons” responsible for implementing anti-money laundering measures, including the filing of suspicious transaction reports (STR) and foreign exchange transaction reports (CTRs) with the new Financial Intelligence Authority (FIA), Uganda`s financial intelligence unit. The list of responsible persons includes all financial institutions, lawyers, executors or trustees, casinos, real estate agents, jewellers and financial institutions. A number of KYC obligations are imposed on each responsible person. This includes the obligation to identify customers, beneficial owners and other persons involved in a financial transaction and to keep detailed records of customers and transactions. These records shall be kept for at least ten years. Financial institutions are also required to monitor transactions and report suspicious activity to the appropriate authorities. 16 June 2022 (Entebbe, Uganda): The IGAD Security Sector Programme (IGAD SSP) successfully organized a regional training on the application of mutual legal assistance and extradition frameworks held in Entebbe, Uganda, from 13 to 15 June 2022. The purpose of the workshop was to raise awareness of the content and importance of the two IGAD conventions on mutual legal assistance and extradition and to build consensus among participants to facilitate ratification, incorporation into domestic law and implementation of the conventions. Another objective was to improve the implementation of Kenya and Uganda`s obligations under international law under the United Nations Protocol on Trafficking in Persons and the Protocol on the Smuggling of Migrants. Mutual legal assistance is a formal mechanism for the cross-border collection and transmission of information or evidence for the purpose of criminal investigations or prosecutions. The two IGAD conventions provide an important platform for improving judicial cooperation in the region.

Once implemented, they should assist the region in effectively combating terrorism and cross-border crime through formal and informal cooperation between relevant law enforcement agencies and the judiciary in the region. This will not only strengthen and improve the capacity of the various countries of the IGAD region to combat crime, but also strengthen regional capacities in this area. The training manual for this regional workshop contains the full text of both conventions and a reference guide to other resources on mutual legal assistance and extradition. The workshop was enriched by personalities from the region and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) who reflected on continental and global experiences, while participants from IGAD member States shared their technical perspectives as parliamentarians, senior officials of national central authorities, senior law enforcement officials, prosecutors and judges. Entebbe and Naivasha (Uganda/Kenya), 04. March 2021 – Cross-border crime requires a transnational response, and international cooperation is essential to prevent these crimes, secure convictions and support those involved. To promote such cooperation, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) brought together officials from Kenya and Uganda under the Better Migration Management Programme (BMM) to strengthen bilateral legal cooperation in migrant trafficking and smuggling cases involving the two countries. The purpose of the workshop was to raise awareness of the content and importance of the two IGAD conventions on mutual legal assistance and extradition and to build consensus among participants to facilitate ratification, incorporation into domestic law and implementation of the conventions.

In October 2020, the IIJ held an online workshop for 42 Ugandan prosecutors to improve their understanding of mutual legal assistance processes and develop skills to search for and obtain evidence and assistance from foreign colleagues in terrorism cases. The main objective of the training was to improve practical skills in drafting outgoing letters rogatory and extradition requests, as well as in processing incoming requests. On 2 October 2013, President Museveni approved the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) of 2013, enacting legislation that represents an important first step towards the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing in Uganda. Prior to the entry into force of the AMLA, which entered into force in December 2013, Uganda did not have comprehensive anti-money laundering legislation. The AMLA creates a comprehensive legal framework to address anti-money laundering issues.