MONROVIA — Liberia’s Inter-Ministerial Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Steering Committee and the Inter-governmental Action Group Against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA) pledged to identify mitigating measures against emerging risks and changes to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards. The implications for the private sector were highlighted during GIABA’s ongoing compliance summit in Monrovia.
Addressing 150 participants from West African countries on Monday, July 22, 2024, at the summit’s opening session, Liberia’s Justice Minister and Attorney General, Cllr. N. Oswald Tweh, expressed the country’s commitment and preparedness to detect and respond to FATF’s evolving risks by enforcing robust legal actions to safeguard Liberia’s private sector and the West African region.
According to Cllr. Tweh, Liberia is promoting a culture of compliance among all reporting entities by stringently enforcing AML/CFT laws and regulations to deter launderers, enablers, and suspected criminals involved in suspicious financial activities. He emphasized that the Ministry of Justice, the Financial Intelligence Agency of Liberia, and other competent authorities are effectively and technically strengthened to enforce AML/CFT measures against non-compliant entities with substantial evidence of money laundering and other financial crimes.
“In the dynamic and ever-evolving landscape of global finance, the importance of compliance cannot be overstated. The FATF standards serve as the bedrock upon which our financial integrity is built, ensuring resilience against money laundering, terrorist financing, and other financial crimes. As these standards evolve to meet new and emerging risks, it is imperative that we, as a region, stay ahead of the curve and adapt swiftly and effectively,” said Cllr. Tweh.
He stressed that the private sector plays an indispensable role in this endeavor, with businesses, financial institutions, and other private entities at the frontline of implementing these standards. “Their vigilance, adherence to compliance protocols, and proactive measures are crucial in safeguarding our financial systems. This summit provides a unique platform for dialogue, knowledge sharing, and collaboration, enabling us to collectively navigate the complexities of emerging risks and changes to FATF standards.”
Cllr. Tweh urged participants to engage actively in discussions, share best practices, and explore innovative solutions over the next few days. “Our goal is to forge a robust and unified front against financial crimes, ensuring that our region remains a safe and attractive environment for legitimate economic activities.”
For his part, the FIA Officer-In-Charge, Mohammed A. Nasser, welcomed the West African delegates to the GIABA compliance summit and encouraged them to make the most of the training.
According to the OIC, substantial breaches exist regarding the operational enforcement of preventive AML/CFT policies and actions by regulated entities due to numerous issues such as the inability to understand risks, ineffective customer due diligence, weak transaction monitoring systems, and challenges facing suspicious transaction reporting systems.
He cautioned compliance practitioners in Liberia and the West African region to analyze mutual evaluation reports judiciously and incorporate appropriate results and recommendations into their risk assessments and AML/CFT programs to ensure continued compliance with global AML/CFT standards.
Nasser expressed a commitment to combating illicit financing and stressed that the GIABA compliance summit aims to raise awareness among critical stakeholders, particularly the private sector and Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs), regarding evolving money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing (AML/CFT/PF) activities.
“The summit also intends to reinforce participants’ capacity to address evolving risks and align their compliance frameworks with the revised FATF standards and methodology.”
The FIA OIC highlighted that the compliance summit underscores the significance of sharing experiences and identifying challenges hindering effective AML/CFT enforcement, aiming to enable better compliance across the West African region.
Nasser lauded GIABA for its determined efforts in promoting FATF standards in West Africa. He added that GIABA is fulfilling its obligation with impartiality and neutrality through the mutual evaluation method. “The mutual evaluation process is a peer review mechanism, directed by GIABA, highlighting technical compliance and effectiveness in implementing FATF standards.”
Also speaking at the opening session, GIABA Director General Edwin W. Harris elaborated that the global compliance landscape keeps evolving with new and emerging money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation (ML/TF/PF) risks. According to Harris, understanding and effectively addressing these emerging risks are essential for deepening compliance and ensuring the integrity and stability of the financial system. He noted that FATF recently adopted some revisions to its standards.
He stressed the importance of compliance professionals staying informed about these changes to ensure their organizations remain compliant. “Mutual evaluation is a core mandate of GIABA. This peer-reviewed exercise assesses countries’ compliance with FATF standards and the effectiveness of their actions in tackling money laundering, terrorist, and proliferation financing. To date, GIABA has adopted sixteen Mutual Evaluation Reports (MERs) under its second round of mutual evaluations. Overall, member states have made considerable progress in implementing the technical requirements of FATF standards but still face substantial challenges in taking effective action in line with the risks they are currently faced with,” Harris pointed out.
He mentioned that underperformance in enforcing AML/CFT laws and regulations has led to member states being placed on the Enhanced Follow-Up process and the International Cooperation Review Group (ICRG) active review for large economies, with significant adverse impacts on the perceptions and reputations of member states within the international community.
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