A/HRC/25/52 I. Introduction 1. In its resolution 19/38, the Human Rights Council requested the Independent Expert on the effects of foreign debt and other related international financial obligations of States on the full enjoyment of all human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights to prepare a comprehensive study on the negative impact of the non-repatriation of funds of illicit origin to the countries of origin on the application by States of the maximum available resources to the full realization of all human rights, in particular economic, social and cultural rights, with special attention paid to developing countries and countries with economies in transition burdened by foreign debt, and to present a report thereon to the Council at its twenty-second session. 2. In follow-up to that request, the Independent Expert presented an interim report on the subject to the Human Rights Council in March 2013 (A/HRC/22/42 and Corr.1), in which he highlighted the scale of the problem, provided an overview of existing initiatives to curb illicit financial flows and briefly highlighted the impact of non-repatriation of illicit funds on the realization of human rights in the countries of origin. 3. In its resolution 22/12, the Human Rights Council requested the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to assist the Independent Expert in convening an expert consultation on the topic. The Council also requested the Independent Expert to present a comprehensive study to it at its twenty-fifth session. The consultation, which brought together experts in human rights, anti-money laundering, trade and tax issues, as well as representatives of States, took place in Geneva on 20 and 21 June 2013. Participants shared their perspectives on the following key issues: (a) the impact of illicit financial outflows; (b) the main initiatives that had been taken in countries of origin and destination to return stolen assets and the main problems encountered in that regard; and (c) the main human rights issues relating to the outflow, seizure, freezing and return of stolen assets. 4. The Independent Expert is grateful to all the States that participated in the consultation, and to the Governments of Guatemala and Switzerland, in particular, for sharing information on their national and international efforts to address the problem of illicit financial flows. He also thanks the individual experts for sharing their perspectives on the content of the final report, and the Stolen Asset Recovery Initiative for its comments on his interim report. 5. The present report builds on the interim report. In order to avoid duplication, the present report focuses on the impact of the non-repatriation of illicit funds on the capacity of the States of origin to realize human rights and the importance of international assistance and cooperation in addressing the problem of illicit financial flows. The report does not attempt to be exhaustive in covering all possible types of impact of illicit funds. 6. In its resolution 19/38, the Human Rights Council refers to funds of illicit origin related to corruption. While corruption represents an important drain on the resources available to States for investment in infrastructure and social programmes, it is only a small component of the total amount of funds lost.1 Furthermore, as noted in the interim report of the Independent Expert, those outflows stem from corruption, embezzlement and tax 1 4 See, for example, Raymond W. Baker, Capitalism���s Achilles Heel: Dirty Money and How to Renew the Free-Market System (Hoboken, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2005), pp. 168–169. The author estimates that less than 3 per cent of illicit funds consists of the proceeds of bribery and theft by Government officials.