Leveraging Strategic Intelligence within The Global Ecosystem of Criminality and Corruption

As I frequently note in our strategic intelligence work at ICAIE across numerous markets around the world: the global ecosystem of criminality has expanded greatly today compared to even a decade ago including the lucrative trade in narcotics and synthetic drugs, fakes, counterfeits, illegal tobacco and alcohol products, and other illicit goods and contraband.

It is not only the illicit trade vectors that converge, entrenched non-state actors including criminal gangs, mafias, terrorists, and violent militias also converge and gravitate to easy-making profit enterprises – incentivized to keep shadow economies and black markets booming.

It is quite evident that the economic impacts and harms of illicit trade to governments are significant not only as threat multipliers that finance greater chaos, instability and insecurity, but hundreds of billions of dollars of loss revenue that directly flow annually into the coffers of bad actors and threat networks, and not into their national Treasuries to finance economic growth and development or to fund often needed social services, critical infrastructure projects, and brighter futures.

In a world of convergence, the risks associated with illicit trade are inter-linked with other wicked crimes and threats – each individually dangerous but whose sum represents a far greater harm across borders that endangers our common security, prosperity, and general well-being.

Learn more about ICAIE: https://icaie.com/