Bribery Commission Chief, World Bank Officials Discuss Asset Recovery Cooperation
COLOMBO – The Chairman of Sri Lanka’s Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC), Justice Neil Iddawala, met with senior World Bank officials in Vienna on Wednesday (3) to discuss strengthening the country’s asset recovery framework under the newly enacted Proceeds of Crime Act No. 5 of 2025 (POCA).
The meeting, held at the UN Secretariat in Vienna on the sidelines of the Second Resumed Sixteenth Session of the UNCAC (United Nations Convention Against Corruption) Implementation Review Group, brought together Justice Iddawala and World Bank representatives Laura Pop, Neha Maryam Zaigham, and Emile van der Does de Willebois.
Discussions focused on the effective implementation of POCA, which provides for the tracing, freezing, confiscation, management, and disposal of proceeds of crime, including corruption. World Bank officials expressed their readiness to explore avenues of technical assistance to strengthen Sri Lanka’s enforcement capacity.
Sri Lanka has previously benefited from the World Bank’s Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative, including support in developing the legal framework on asset declarations, drafting terms of reference for the electronic asset declaration system, and providing expertise at United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) workshops. Technical guidance from StAR also contributed to Sri Lanka’s development of a Proceeds of Crime Policy, laying the foundation for the new law.
Looking ahead, CIABOC and the World Bank discussed possible areas of cooperation, such as capacity building for investigators and prosecutors, access to advanced tools for asset tracing and management, guidance on electronic platforms for asset recovery and a long-term partnership to institutionalize asset recovery mechanisms.
“This engagement reaffirms Sri Lanka’s commitment to international cooperation in asset recovery and the fight against corruption, while leveraging global expertise to ensure that illicit gains are returned to the people,” CIABOC said in a statement.
Justice Iddawala is currently leading the Sri Lanka delegation at the UNCAC session in Vienna.
-ENCL
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