Anti-Money Laundering at the Forefront of a Four-day Seminar

A four-day training seminar on the theme “strengthening anti-money laundering/ combating the finance of terrorism (AML/CFT) domestic cooperation”, opened this morning at Le Labourdonnais Hotel in Port Louis, in the presence of the Attorney-General, Mr Yatin Varma.

Some fifty participants from various institutions involved in the fight against money laundering namely, the Bank of Mauritius, the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), the Financial Intelligence Unit, the Financial Services Commission, the Solicitor General's Office, the Director of Public Prosecution, the Customs Department, the Gaming Regulatory Authority and the Police, are attending the seminar.

An initiative of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in collaboration with the Government of Mauritius, the seminar is designed to assist those institutions on how domestic cooperation is necessary to fight money laundering in a bid to promote a sound financial sector and ensure that the banking system is not used for money laundering. The seminar will also enhance the knowledge of the participants on the AML/CFT regime in Mauritius and to how they can work together both locally and internationally to fight money laundering.

In his opening address, the Attorney-General, Mr Varma said that the seminar has come at an opportune time as money laundering is becoming a global phenomenon and considered as a threat not only to the financial sector but to the society at large. He also stressed on the need to have both domestic and international cooperation in order to tone down the level of money laundering.

It is to be noted that Mauritius has passed several legislations as regards the prevention of corruption, fraud, financial crime, money laundering and terrorism activities to comply with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) 40+9 recommendations. Among them are, the setting up of the Financial Intelligence Unit and ICAC.

Mauritius is also among the first batch of countries in Africa to have undergone the Financial Sector Assessment Programme (FSAP) and so far two FSAPs have been adopted. The country is also in the process of finalising the Asset Recovery Bill considered as another tool to fight money launderers with the seizure of their ill-gotten assets.