WINDHOEK: The European Union (EU) Delegation to Namibia is hosting a week-long workshop for officials handling financial intelligence, money laundering investigations, terrorist financing prosecution, and crime proceeds tracing and recovery.

The workshop was prompted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) placing Namibia under increased monitoring, also known as grey listing, for failing to comply with international anti-money laundering, counter-terrorism financing, and counter-proliferation financing standards in February this year.

It is expected to increase the capacity of the attending officials, allowing Namibia to adequately implement the necessary actions identified in the FATF action plan, as well as improve Namibia’s compliance with relevant international and FATF Standards, allowing Namibia to exit the grey list in the shortest amount of time.

Speaking at the opening of the workshop in Windhoek on Monday, Ana Beatriz Martins, EU Ambassador to Namibia, stated that the EU is increasingly active
in Africa with its partners, contributing to state stability and allowing for informed, effective, and sound financial systems.

‘We are delighted to be here this morning to offer our support to Namibia, not only to exit the grey list, which is a priority for us all, but also to strengthen her framework in combating illicit financial flows, money laundering, and forms of organised crime,’ she stated.

Financial Intelligence Centre Director Bryan Eiseb stated that Namibians should continue to strive for excellence and create a long-term impact in maintaining the integrity of their financial institutions and the interests of society as a whole.

‘We must consolidate our efforts amongst state agencies, the private sector, and international partners to disrupt financial crime. We must use all tools available in our criminal justice arsenal to identify proceeds of financial crimes and intervene on these proceeds so that we demonstrate that crime does not pay,’ he said.

The workshop’s approximately 30 attendees in
clude representatives from the Namibian Police Force, the Anti-Corruption Commission, the Namibia Central Intelligence Service, and the Office of the Prosecutor General, among others.

It is being hosted by the EU Delegation to Namibia in collaboration with the Financial Intelligence Centre.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency