Story by Dominic Hlordzi from Dakar, Senegal
ECOWAS Member States have been encouraged to be fully involved in the fight against money laundering and terrorism financing, which are undermining good governance and holistic development in the subregion.
They are to implement agreed policies and programmes to curb money laundering to save resources for development.
The Director General of the Inter-Governmental Action Group Against Money Laundering in West Africa, GIABA, Edwin Harris Junior, said this at the GIABA Annual Briefing Session for Ambassadors of ECOWAS Member States, Technical and Financial Partners in Dakar, Senegal.
The West African subregion is said to be highly vulnerable to money laundering and terrorist financing. Without strong political commitment to combat it, the negative impacts on the economies of ECOWAS Member States are enormous.
Opening the Briefing Session for Ambassadors of ECOWAS Member States, Technical and Financial Partners with a rendition of the ECOWAS Anthem, the Director General of the Inter-Governmental Action Group Against Money Laundering in West Africa, GIABA, Edwin Harris Junior, said that though the fight against money laundering is becoming more complex, the organisation is steadfast in its advocacy and sensitisation interventions.
He said GIABA’s 2023-2027 Strategic Plan, focuses on sensitising all the various targeted audiences.
Beyond the sharing of information, he said engagement sessions aim to encourage the governments of Member States to act in the relevant areas of the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing for the integrity of economic and financial systems.
“By so doing, I am calling on you all to add your voices to the authorities back home to strengthen the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter financing of terrorism AML/CFT regimes in your countries,” the GIABA Director General entreated participants.
He reaffirmed GIABA’s commitment to working with all stakeholders, saying “together we will continue to strengthen our collective response, foster innovation, and exploit the potential of emerging technologies to stay ahead of these threats”.
“It is therefore more than important, that all stakeholders fully understand the need to take ownership of the fight and appreciate their contribution to building our economies and by extension, our communities to achieve our desired common prosperity,” Mr Harris Junior stated.
In a speech read on his behalf, the Senegalese Minister of Finance and Budget, Cheikh Diba, said the Senegalese government is implementing policies that prevent money laundering and make terrorism financing difficult for perpetrators.
He urged all ECOWAS member countries to support GIABA in its efforts to combat financial crimes in the subregion.
Speaking on behalf of the Dean of the Ambassadors of the ECOWAS Member States, the Cabo Verde Ambassador, Hermino Manuel Da Costa Moniz, said GIABA provides unfailing support to ECOWAS Member States, particularly in strengthening mechanisms for the prevention, detection and suppression of money laundering, the financing of terrorism, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
“Faced with the challenges of financial crime, which remain numerous and complex, we must deploy more efforts and work hand in hand to preserve the integrity of our economies and ensure the stability and security of our citizens,” Ambassador Moniz advised.
Ambassador Moniz said the Member States welcome all the significant progress made by the institution in recent years, particularly in developing policies and strategies to fight money laundering and the countering of the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT), coordinating regional efforts, and cooperating with the relevant international bodies.
“It is in this spirit of collaboration and mutual respect that I encourage every country represented in this room to actively engage in this fight to foster our collective defences.”
All speakers at the session underscored the need for stakeholders to contribute meaningfully to curbing money laundering and terrorism financing in the subregion.
GIABA, which was set up to fight money laundering and terrorism financing, was ECOWAS response to the call of the international community for an alliance against transnational organised crime and its harmful effects on peace, security, stability and economic development of member States.
This year marks the 24th anniversary of GIABA.
Its mandate has evolved to adapt to changes, which now includes the fight against proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
The 2023 Annual Report of the Activities and Programmes of the organisation was launched.
