Following the inclusion of illicit trade as the only new area of work in the outcome document of UNCTAD15, the Bridgetown Covenant, UNCTAD will host the second iteration of the Illicit Trade Forum in FEBRUARY 2024. The event will be organised in collaboration with the Transnational Alliance to Combat Illicit Trade (TRACIT).

Illicit trade significantly endangers all aspects of the SDGs, creating a triple threat to the financing of development: crowding out legitimate economic activity, depriving governments of revenues for investment in vital public services and increasing the costs of achieving the SDGs by eroding the progress already made. Further, identifying, quantifying and combatting illicit trade requires significant investments from member States and collaboration amongst international organisations, along with cooperative efforts from private sector stakeholders.

To address these issues, the two-day Forum will hold interactive panel discussions on the following topics:

• Illicit trade in times of crises
• Mitigating illicit trade through maritime transport
• Trade in falsified medicines: a danger to health and development
• Illicit financial flows related to trade, tax, and criminal activities

The UNCTAD secretariat will present a work programme of potential areas for cooperation and collaboration to address illicit trade and work towards fulfilling the newly awarded mandate.

The Forum will encourage an active dialogue involving a wide range of stakeholders, including member States and representatives from IGOs, NGOs, academia and the private sector. Delegates will be encouraged to share their own experiences, views and best practices.