Nigeria calls for institutional framework to tackle money laundering in West Africa

Nigeria has appealed to the Action Group Against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA) to create an institutional framework for the subregion’s financial crime legislation to be enforced.

The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, (SAN), made the appeal at the inauguration of the 27th Meeting of the Ministerial Committee of GIABA, in Abuja.

Fagbemi, who also serves as the Chairman of the GIABA Ministerial Committee, said member nations ought to give priority to implementing national anti-money laundering and counterterrorism financing systems.

He said by doing this, the nations would be able to demand the best performance possible from their national institutions and make progress in the fight against financial crimes.

Fagbemi said, “Our collective commitment to put in place legislative policy and institutional frameworks is necessary to protect the integrity of our financial systems from threats of money laundering, terrorist and proliferation financing.

“As we come to the close of the second round of mutual evaluations, I believe we need to take some time for introspection and an assessment of where we have fallen short.

“In particular, looking at the effectiveness of our AML/CFT/CPF frameworks, it is clear that across the region there is significant room for improvement.

The attorney general stated that it is impossible to overstate how important it is to the safety and security of African countries to combat money laundering, financing of terrorism and financing of nuclear proliferation.

According to him, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Standards are instruments to guarantee safety, security, and prosperity in nations, areas, continents, and the international community rather than punitive measures.