Mooney laundering is one of the serious criminal challenges facing the world and it has become even more complex now that it is an integral part of the illegal drug trade.
Consequently, many countries are finding it extremely difficult to counter this economic and criminal menace, particularly the poorer countries which lack the financial, human and technological resources
Money laundering has become an international phenomenon and therefore countries cannot fight it in isolation, rather, a global effort is needed.
Abdullahi Y .SHEHU , Deputy Director, Financial Crimes, Office of the Special Adviser to the President on Drugs & Financial Crimes, Federal Republic of Nigeria in his paper : MONEY LAUNDERING: THE CHALLENGE OF GLOBAL ENFORCEMENT* pertinently points out that money laundering is a serious menace that no nation, no matter how powerful, can effectively tackle  in isolation. The imperative of a concerted and coordinated effort in dealing with the problem cannot be over–emphasised. The United Nations (UN), has taken the lead, as it were, to create the necessary legal framework for the fight against the scourge. Remarkable multilateral efforts against money laundering started in 1995 with the UN Conference on drug trafficking and associated crimes, which culminated in the signing of a Convention known as the UN Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988.  The Convention criminalised money laundering and provides a model for national and regional initiatives against the scourge. Since then, a number of countries, including Nigeria, have enacted appropriate legislations against money laundering based on the UN model. Without going into a detailed critique of the UN initiatives, suffice it to say that states are at liberty to make laws that suit their local peculiarities. It is important to note also that the UN has just concluded the elaboration of a Convention Against Transnational Organized Crimes with its appropriate protocols which is scheduled for signing by member states.
According  to Abdullah, some experts estimate that the global crime economy constitutes about US$100 billion; while the British Intelligence estimated that the total amount being laundered annually is about US$500 billion..The illicit drug trade alone is estimated to generate about US$300 billion of which a significant part would require laundering. By far, organised crime poses one of the greatest challenges to the stability and prosperity of the global system short of military warfare.
Against this backdrop, injection of US$500,000 to Guyana’s efforts to combat money laundering and drug trafficking by the U.S. is a most timely and commendable one, as for quite some time now the Government of Guyana has been stressing  its lack of resources to fight this criminal menace.
The money, provided through the U.S. State Department Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, under the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI), will be used in particular to enhance the area of capacity building.
Fighting money laundering and drug trafficking poses a greater challenge than many countries, because of its expansive and porous borders and therefore we need as much assistance in this vital area of crime fighting.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ms. Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, referring to Guyana’s borders and with the concentration of its populace in just a small part of the country, in addition to scarce resources and competing development objectives, said the fight against drugs in a meaningful way could be very challenging, hence the importance of having cooperation initiatives with the U.S., other colleagues under the CBSI, and countries in the hemisphere and farther afield.