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The Lithuanian dairy industry has seen its share of highs and lows in recent years, culminating this year in a rash of dairy farmer protests, rising energy costs, inflation, farm closures, and rock bottom prices for raw milk. During the first half of 2022, export sales grew according to Lithuanian dairy producer organisation Pieno Centras (1), as dairy product prices rose and demand remained high, boosting production and Lithuanian farm milk sales.…

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has suspended Russia from membership because of its continuing military invasion of Ukraine – an unprovoked attack that the UN said by February 20 had killed 8,006 civilians and injured 13,287.

The global AML body’s plenary today (Feb 24) acted following “reports of arms trade between the Russian Federation and United Nations sanctioned jurisdictions, and malicious cyber-activities emanating from Russia”.…

The European Commission has added the British overseas territory (BOT) of Gibraltar to European Union (EU) list of high-risk countries with strategic deficiencies in their anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) regimes. This latest update to the EU AML blacklist (1) means that banks and other AML obliged entities will have to apply enhanced due diligence when dealing with transactions with Gibraltar, which was ceded to the UK in 1713, having been seized during the War of the Spanish Succession.…

The manufacture of technical textiles is in its nascency across North Africa, even more so in sub-Saharan Africa, with the continent having long been considered a low-cost, cut-and-sew destination rather than a production hub for value-added items. But due to the trend by European and US brands for near-shoring and diversification away from east Asian production, and the ambitions of certain African countries to develop a full manufacturing chain, the potential for making technical textiles in Africa is gradually emerging.…

The European Parliament is reeling from the so-called ‘Qatargate’ cash-for-influence corruption and money laundering scandal that broke December 9 when Belgian police found over EUR1.5 million (USD1.6 million) cash in raids on locations across Brussels. In a December 15 resolution (1) on the suspicions of corruption by Qatar, passed by 541 votes in favour, two against, and three abstentions, members of the European Parliament (MEPs) agreed to suspend all work related to Qatar, notably on visa liberalisation and an aviation agreement, as well as to deny access to the Parliament for Qatari representatives.…

An African garment and textile sector rebounding from the Covid-19 pandemic has seen strong export growth in the first three-quarters of 2022 start to sputter through a tightening of retail demand in Europe and the United States. These remain Africa’s two primary export markets and their consumers are reducing spending as inflation and recession concerns grow.…

The African knitwear manufacturing sector has been regaining ground lost during the Covid-19 pandemic, with established manufacturing hubs capitalising on the growing demand for nearshoring in Europe and to a lesser extent the USA. There are major investments under way in developing production capacity, particularly in West Africa.…

Global progress on tackling the risks posed by money laundering and terrorist financing (ML/TF) is “paralysed” according to the latest annual index report (1) from the Basel Institute on Governance. Over the 11 years since the first report, AML risks “have changed depressingly little”, said Basel AML Index project manager Kateryna Boguslavska on October 4.…

Fraud is sometimes downplayed as a ‘victimless crime’, especially when companies are the direct victims. While that is obviously untrue, frauds associated with food that can directly harm consumer health give the lie to this statement. It is one reason why food fraud is a clear priority problem for international policy makers.…

Academics have stressed at an international conference in Tunisia the importance of ensuring African graduates secure jobs after their studies, ideally linked to the expertise they have gained during their courses. They spoke out at the second Annual Academic Summit hosted by the Honoris United Universities (HUU) network of private universities, which was staged on both campuses of Tunisia’s Central University (Université Centrale), Tunis, and the Ariana, Tunis-based ESPRIT: Ecole Supérieure Privée d’Ingénierie et de Technologies, from August 30 to September 2.…