Zambia lost an estimated US$3.5 billion to illicit financial flows over the review period, according to the Financial Intelligence Centre’s 10th Trends Report, covering 2024–2025, which the Centre says was released alongside its Second National Risk Assessment Report.
The FIC said the outflows were driven primarily by commercial activity linked to multinational enterprises operating in the private sector, and were compounded by a sharp rise in tax evasion estimated at K28.9 billion over the same period. According to the report, the bulk of the illicit flows were tied to money laundering practices, including cash-based transactions designed to obscure audit trails, the use of shell companies, and the concealment of beneficial ownership behind corporate structures, with Asia, the Middle East and South America identified as key destinations for the funds.
During the review period, the FIC disseminated 872 financial intelligence reports relating to suspected illicit financial flows, the majority involving commercial transactions marked by unusual or complex activity, suspicious customer behaviour, or transactions inconsistent with a customer’s known profile. The Centre described continued illicit outflows as one of the gravest threats to Zambia’s long-term fiscal stability and its capacity to fund public services, warning that every dollar lost to illegal channels represents a dollar unavailable for reinvestment in national development.
The findings add urgency to Zambia’s ongoing economic reform programme, which is aimed at restoring fiscal discipline and attracting private investment. The FIC has called for strengthened enforcement measures and closer cooperation between regulatory bodies and law enforcement agencies to curb the outflows, noting that unchecked illicit financial activity risks undermining the returns of even strong headline economic growth if a significant share of that wealth continues to leave the country through unlawful channels.
Sources: Lusaka Times | Zambia Monitor
