On 10^th of May 2021 the online final conference of Project ECOFIT will take place.

The online final conference will be a unique opportunity to:

• Present the key findings of the project, and the best policy options to increase the operational cooperation among European countries and with Southeast European countries;
• Provide recommendations and guidelines to better put into action the operational cooperation;
• Discuss with experts in the field future challenges in light of the EMPACT Firearms Operational Action Plans and the priorities of the 2020-2025 EU Action Plan on firearms trafficking.

To join the ECOFIT final conference register here:         https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_yzDEcsI7SF2DrhG1gB3WMw

An online Steering Committee meeting was held on 29^th of April 2021. The overall scope of the meeting was to present to the Steering Committee the results of the impact assessments conducted on the five operational instruments considered in Project ECOFIT (i.e. mechanisms for data collection and data sharing, national firearms focal point, joint criminal investigations and controlled deliveries), and to develop recommendations for the EU and guidelines for LEAs on how to improve the operational instruments related to illicit firearms trafficking.

In February 2021, within the scope of Project ECOFIT, five online workshops were held with representatives of EU MSs and third countries (Norway, Switzerland and the UK), representatives of non-EU SELEC MSs, and representatives of international institutions to discuss the gaps in the use of five operational instruments related to illicit firearms trafficking (i.e. mechanisms for data collection, mechanisms for data sharing, national firearms focal points, joint criminal investigations, controlled delivery procedures), and to define policy objectives and related policy options to fill these gaps.

The kick-off meeting of Project ECOFIT was held at Transcrime office in Milan. The overall scope of the meeting was to introduce the Project and its structure and to discuss with the partners and the experts how to map the police international cooperation in the fight against illicit firearms trafficking in EU and in 7 non-EU SELEC countries.