Bintou serves as the Regional (West Africa) Technical Advisor for Inter-Governmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA) https://www.giaba.org/ and ARINWA https://en.arinwa.net/ at Deutsche Gesellschaft für International Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.
She backed a master’s degree in business administration from University of Nicosia, Cyprus, A bachelor’s degree in Banking and Finance from London Metropolitan University in London and a Certified Financial Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Specialist from Association of Certified Anti Money Laundering Specialist (ACAMS). Bintou has worked in the financial sector, private, public sector, and bilateral organization. She also collaborates with other international partners such as UNODC, IMF, Expertise France, world bank, FIU secretariat etc.
She has been actively engaged in the fight against Illicit Financial Flows within the region and has been promoting capacity building initiatives for both government entities and the private sector.
In October,2022, she and her colleagues led the Senegalese officials delegation on a study tour to Vienna, Austria on an Anti-corruption course which lasted for one week at the International Anti-Corruption Center (IACA) center and the delegates were certified.
With the valuable technical and financial support of UNODC and GIZ, through its global program to combat illicit financial flows, she led the ARINWA delegates on an advocacy mission in Sao tome to engage member state authorities in exploring the institutional integration of the network within this organization.
ARINWA https://en.arinwa.net/ is the Asset Recovery Inter-Agency Network for West Africa (ARINWA) was established with the primary purpose of combating financial crime by recovering assets illegally acquired by criminals. This is a crucial mission, as it helps prevent and combat crime by depriving criminals of their financial resources.
The network was launched in Accra in November 2014, is dedicated to finding effective means to combat various forms of crime, with a special focus on financial crime.
The primary objective of this mission is to encourage countries to establish an Asset Recovery Agency within their respective jurisdictions and to influence policies, aiding member states in establishing legislation and institutions to facilitate the recovery and management of criminal assets in line with international standards.
Representing GIZ alongside other ARINWA delegates, including the President, Secretary, and Permanent Secretary, Bintou and the delegates met with Ministers of Justice, Supreme Court Judges, FIUs, Security Ministries, and all other relevant authorities engaged in the fight against illicit financial flows.
She was incredibly encouraged by the positive dialogues established with the authorities of Sao Tome, who have committed to implementing robust measures for asset recovery initiatives and enacting laws pertaining to the recovery of criminal assets.
The initial phase of the mission included visits to authorities in Ghana, Nigeria, and Togo, has been successfully completed.
The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of ARINWA will be hosted in Gambia from 28-30 November,2023 at the International Conference Center.The AGM will provide an opportunity to maintain transparency and accountability within ARINWA, to share its results, challenges and objectives, and to ensure that each member is informed of its performance and priorities.
Bintou will be leading the ARINWA delegation in the Gambia during their advcacy visit to the Gambia authorities and the facilitation of the AGM meeting financed by GIZ?UNODC and the Gambia government.
It's truly remarkable how the universe has the power to bring people who share the same passion together, even when we are thousands of miles apart physically.
