Money Laundering And The Legal Framework Governing Economic Crime In East Africa

ABSTRACT

In East Africa, the idea of economic c1ime is a new concept in the legal perspective and has only

been recently embraced in the 21" Century. Practically however, economic crimes, and more

specifically money laundering, have been taking place for centuries. Among others, weak and

poor legal systems and reluctance to enforce the laws has led to the growth of this type of crime.

The end result is that East Afi·ica has become a huge hub for illegal drugs, illegal anns and most

recently terrorism. The biggest aim of this study was to highlight the wealmesses in the antimoney

launde1ing laws in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania and to propose what the three East

Afi·ican nations should do to curb this vice. The study sheds light on the history, trends and

typologies of money laundering in East Africa; the legal and regulatory framework governing

money laundering in East Afiica; the effects on the different sectors in the economy and what the

law- makers ang law enforcers ought to do to either reduce or completely eradicate money laundering and other economic crimes.