UNESCO鈥檚 Cooperation with the European Union to Fight Illicit Trafficking of Cultural Property
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Since the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding in 2012, the EU and UNESCO have undertaken a number of joint initiatives to strengthen the regulatory environment and promote capacity-development, supported by the (DG EAC).
The current project "Inter-regional and crosscutting action aiming to strengthen the fight against the illicit trafficking of cultural property" is a continuation of a series of projects related to the fight against illicit trafficking of cultural property.
Click here to find out more about the previous projects (2016-2019).
Click here for resources and outcomes of the EU-funded projects.
Inter-regional and crosscutting action aiming to strengthen the fight against illicit trafficking of cultural property (2019-2022)
The current project offers capacity development for a diversity of professionals on a broadened geographical scope. In addition to the EU Member States, the Members States in the Western Balkans and the partner countries of the European Neighbourhood Instrument (ENI) South are invited to actively participate in the project.
International Conference ''Strengthening the fight against illicit trafficking of cultural property - a UNESCO/EU Conference''
On 9 June 2022, UNESCO organised, in partnership with the European Union, a one-day Conference that gathered experts from academia, the art market, the financial sector, judiciary and law enforcement, as well as international organizations and government officials to share experiences and discuss concrete measures to strengthen the fight against illicit trafficking of cultural property worldwide.
Building upon the outcomes of the and the 2021, this International Conference addressed different dimensions of interregional and interdiscipliary cooperation as well as educational and awareness-raising efforts.
Programme |
Biographies of the moderators and the panelists
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Watch :
UNESCO Campus 鈥淗ow to fight against illicit trafficking of cultural property?鈥 鈥 A Students鈥 Workshop of European UNESCO Chairs and UNITWIN Networks.
On 31 May, on the occasion of the European Year of Youth 2022, postgraduate students of UNESCO Chair and UNITWIN programmes discussed how to enhance knowledge and skills needed to fight illicit trafficking of cultural property. Together with leading experts in the field, university students explored the different dimensions of the subject with a view to better integrate the protection of cultural property and the fight against its illicit trafficking in their training and research.
Workshop Video
UNESCO/EU Workshop on the Role and Means of the Financial Sector in fighting illicit trafficking of cultural property
Videos of the workshop sessions:
Introductory Session
Session 1 / Regulatory Frameworks to fight money laundering and illicit trafficking
of cultural property - theory and practice
Session 2 / Practical Examples and Solutions to fight money laundering and illicit
trafficking of cultural property / Concluding remarks
How can the financial sector fight the illicit trafficking of cultural property and associated money-laundering? What is its role? What are its tools? What are its obstacles?
On 27 January 2022, UNESCO organised an online workshop to answer all these questions and more, with the support of the European Union, bringing together experts, researchers, representatives of the European Central Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction, the European Banking Authority, the European Banking Federation, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and other members for enriching debates.
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Biographies
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Workshop for the European Neighbourhood Instrument South partner countries on the implementation of the UN resolutions on the fight against illicit trafficking in cultural goods and its links with the financing of terrorism
Videos of the workshop sessions:
Session 1 / Introductory Session - UNESCO and European Union in the fight against illicit trafficking
Session 2 / Snapshot of an ENI South Country
Session 3 / The United Nations Office against Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
Session 4 / The United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism
Session 5 / INTERPOL
Session 6 / Training on Cultural Heritage, Crime and Security
On 28 October 2021, UNESCO, in the framework of its cooperation with the European Union, hosted a capacity-development workshop for Partner countries (ENI) addressing the implementation of UN Security Council and UN General Assembly resolutions relating to the fight against illicit trafficking of cultural property.
Programme |
To know more about the resources and the results of this workshop, click
Joint UNESCO/ICOM workshop for European museum and cultural heritage professionals
Videos of the workshop sessions:
Session 1 / Opening 鈥 Museums and their role in fighting illicit traffic
Session 2 / Collections鈥 Management and Preventive Conservation
Session 3 / Due Diligence and Practical Tools
Session 4 / Cooperation with Law Enforcement Agencies
Session 5 / International Cooperation and Education
On 4 and 5 October 2021, UNESCO, in partnership with , hosted a capacity-development workshop for museum and cultural heritage professionals from European Union (EU) Member States. The workshop aimed to raise awareness on cross-cutting cooperation and to strengthen the network of museum and cultural heritage experts to enhance mechanisms to fight against the illicit trafficking of cultural property in Europe and beyond.
Programme |
To know more about the resources and the results of this workshop, click
Peer-to-Peer Workshops
The peer-to-peer exchange was developed in a pilot format of several sessions to facilitate the sharing of experiences and good practices among professionals and thus enhance inter-regional cooperation among three States Parties to the 1970 Convention:
- Algeria as representative of the ENI South partner countries and a source country,
- Serbia as representative of the Western Balkans and a transit country
- The Netherlands as representative of the EU Member States and a destination country.