GIABA HOLDS ITS STATUTORY MEETINGS IN DAKAR
GIABA HOLDS ITS STATUTORY MEETINGS IN DAKAR
The Intergovernmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA) will hold its statutory meetings from 11 May to 17 May 2025 in Dakar, Senegal.
The statutory meetings provide an opportunity for GIABA Member States to come together to discuss regional issues relating to the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (AML/CFT/FP), and to share their experiences of the achievements and challenges encountered in implementing the measures put in plac. They are part and parcel of the efforts of the Community Institution to promote regional integration.
The 43rd plenary meeting of the Technical Commission will be held in a hybrid format from 11 May to 16 May 2025 in Dakar, Senegal. Held twice a year, the purpose of this meeting is to encourage discussions between technical experts from the Member States (MS) on the threats and challenges related to the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) in the sub-region.
It also enables MS to address relevant issues requiring a concerted and harmonized approach to the effective implementation of AML/CFT measures.
Finally, as a platform for sharing experiences, the Plenary is also an opportunity to establish partnerships between experts, MS representatives, technical partners and observers in the field of AML/CFT.
In Dakar, discussions will focus on the follow-up reports on the second round of Member States mutual evaluations. The Evaluation and Compliance Group (ECG) will be discussing, among other things, the 2nd enhanced follow-up Report of Côte d'Ivoire and Togo; the 4th Enhanced Follow-up Report of Benin; the 6th Enhanced Follow-up Report of Burkina Faso and the 7th Enhanced Follow-up report of Cabo Verde.
The purpose of the Mutual Evaluation and Follow-up Processes and Procedures is to assess the level of implementation of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations by Member States. They also aim to provide support to Member States to remedy the shortcomings identified in their AML/CFT mechanisms in relation to compliance and effectiveness.
Also on the agenda of the 43rd GIABA Plenary are the meetings of the Risks, Trends and Method Groups (RTMG) and the Policy Review Group (GRP), which will ponder over typologies, research reports and updates on risk monitoring; the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) Forum behind closed doors, the meeting of the Heads of GIABA delegation, evaluation and compliance work, etc.
The opening ceremony of the 43rd Plenary Meeting is scheduled for 15 May 2025 and will be chaired by the Minister of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Senegal or his representative.
The 30th Meeting of the GIABA Ministerial Committee (GMC) will be held on 17 May 2025, also in Dakar. The GMC is the institution's supreme political decision-making body, bringing together the ministers of economy and finance, justice and interior/security of each member state. In accordance with the by-laws of the GMC, the august body meets at least once a year to approve policy guidelines and examine issues relating to the smooth running of GIABA. In Dakar, the institution's line ministers will discuss and adopt, among other things, the Director General's mid-year Activity Report for the period November 2024 to May 2025, the report of the 43rd meeting of the GIABA Technical/Plenary Commission, the memoranda on the adoption of the Calendar for the 3rd Round of Mutual Evaluation, the membership application from Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, to name but afew.