Regional conference on innovative approaches in combating the shadow economy

Officials of law enforcement agencies, customs bodies, market inspections, and other institutions from North Macedonia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and Montenegro took part in a regional conference devoted to innovative approaches in combating the shadow economy, illicit trade, and intellectual property infringements held in Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia.

The event was organized jointly by AmCham Serbia and AmCham North Macedonia to strengthen and deepen regional ties between institutions and between the public and private sector to fight the shadow economy.

The first day of the conference saw a series of roundtable workshops where the participants exchanged best practices and discussed principal challenges in areas such as storage and destruction of impounded products, collaboration with intellectual property owners, use of emerging technologies and innovative solutions, and inter-departmental and cross-border cooperation.

The first panel discussion was attended by officers of law enforcement agencies from the participating countries, who shared their experiences with the latest trends and key results in combating illicit trade and criminal fraud. This conversation was followed by a presentation of opportunities for automatic data processing using advanced technology to protect intellectual property. The final panel on the first day was devoted to key tools and results of using emerging technology to detect illicit trade, where customs officials from the region presented their perspectives of these issues.

The second day of the event began with a presentation by Jaak Feuggelen of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), who spoke about the advantages of working with international agencies to combat a wide range of fraudulent practices. The conference ended with a panel discussion on copyright protections, with an emphasis on leveraging public-private partnerships to enhance safeguards for intellectual property.