The Observatory of Illicit Markets and the Conflict in Ukraine was established to create an early-warning system to monitor and analyse trends and emerging risks within Ukraine. 

In particular, the Observatory examines and provides insight on the political economy surrounding criminal networks, the war and related issues in Ukraine and the wider region, including methods used to fund the war and avoid sanctions regimes, providing timely, granular analysis on the illicit economy in an easily accessible format for key international stakeholders.

Moreover, It provides tools needed to understand criminal networks, activities and risks, which will be paramount – for instance – during the coming reconstruction phase for donors to understand which acts would be attempting to exploit funds for pernicious and corrupt ends. At the regional level, the Observatory is building a sustainable network of local NGOs, academic institutions, government bodies, police, chambers of commerce, civil society and other actors to strengthen community resilience. The collaboration between civil society, development practitioners and other stakeholders is key to dealing with the impact of the conflict on Ukraine, its communities and the greater region, ensuring that there is scope for monitoring, resilience building and continued responses to emerging threats and changes.