Justicia Shipena
Namibia and Angola will jointly recover unlawfully acquired assets worth about N$3.3 million. The two governments will share the assets under a newly signed asset-sharing agreement.
The agreement was formally signed on Thursday by Namibia’s minister of justice and labour relations, Filemon Wise Immanuel, and Angola’s auditor general, Hélder Fernando Pitta Grós.
The recovered assets will be handled under chapter V of the UN Convention Against Corruption.
This chapter focuses entirely on asset recovery and helps countries address the damage caused by corruption, while making it clear that officials cannot hide stolen assets anywhere.
Namibia signed the convention on 9 September 2003 and ratified it on 3 August 2004.
The executive director in the Ministry of Justice and Labour Relations, Audrin Mathe, said it marks an important step in strengthening cooperation between the two countries.
He said the agreement reflects a shared commitment to justice, accountability and the rule of law, particularly in asset recovery.
A 2023 review on Namibia’s progress on chapter V said Namibia has the legal foundation to cooperate internationally on asset recovery, yet it has not completed a single case involving the return of assets to a foreign state.
It said despite having never refused an international request, the systems required to detect, freeze and recover illicit proceeds remain limited.
Namibia’s International Cooperation in Criminal Matters Act enables the enforcement of foreign confiscation orders, while the Prevention of Organised Crime Act allows both conviction-based and non-conviction-based forfeitures.
An asset forfeiture unit inside the office of the prosecutor general handles these matters, and recovered proceeds are channelled into a criminal asset recovery fund used for crime prevention. Even with this framework in place, the report stated that Namibia has not finalised any asset return cases.
The review explains that Namibia cannot freeze property on the basis of a foreign request unless a foreign court order is already in place.
The law also does not set out clear grounds for refusing international assistance.
The UN further notes the absence of clear rules for consultation before lifting temporary measures such as freezing or seizing assets.
The report urges Namibia to strengthen institutions responsible for asset recovery and financial crime enforcement, improve the legal processes that guide cooperation with other states, and tighten systems used to trace and recover illicit proceeds.
Speaking at the ceremony, Immanuel highlighted the long-standing relationship between Namibia and Angola.
He said Angola has supported Namibia both militarily and materially over the years.
He added that the agreement shows continued cooperation, with both countries committed to the recovery and fair sharing of the assets in question.
Pitta Grós said corruption remains a challenge in Angola, but the government is determined to address it.
He said the agreement shows the value of dialogue and cooperation in tackling corruption.
The agreement follows earlier cooperation in July, when Namibia and Angola agreed to work together to recover proceeds from money laundering and strengthen efforts against financial crimes.
The two countries’ financial intelligence units had signed a memorandum of understanding during the third meeting of the SADC AML-CFT Committee held in Luanda, Angola.
