At the invitation of UNCTAD, the D-8 Director of Economy and External Relations Ms. Rasha Hamdy participated in the UNCTAD Illicit Trade Forum that took place in Geneva from 3-4 February 2020. The 2-days forum discussed the negative impact of illicit trade and illicit financial flows on achieving the UNSDGs. The forum browsed the typology of the illicit financial flows and it reviewed the tools and instruments of the World Custom Organization to combat illicit trade. The forum highlighted the role of the private sector in combating illicit trade, and it reviewed the experience of Nigeria in dealing with illicit trade. It explained how this phenomenon is hindering the achievement of the SDGs in Nigeria and is harming its economic growth.

In her interventions, Ms. Hamdy touched upon the challenges facing the global action aimed at combating illicit trade, as she highlighted the necessity of the harmonisation of policies and legislation when dealing with illicit trade. She pointed out that trade in cultural heritage and antiquities is legal in some countries and illegal for others which signified the lack of collective understanding regarding what constitutes illicit trade. Ms. Hamdy mentioned that the negative consequences of embargoes on the humanitarian conditions of the targeted states have opened the doors to the illicit transfer of trade and financial flows. It forces the targeted country to sell its under-priced natural resources in secret markets; which, in its turn hinders the ability of such country to achieve the SDGs, in addition to increasing the risk of linking illicit trade to other forms of organized crime.

On the sidelines of the forum, Ms. Hamdy met with Mr. Hamed El Kady from the Division of Investment and Enterprise in the UNCTAD Secretariat to discuss the outline for the future cooperation and joint activities between the D-8 and the UNCTAD