Financial Crime World

Ghana’s Anti-Money Laundering Measures Receive Mixed Reviews in Latest Evaluation

Accra, Ghana - Ghana has made significant progress in implementing anti-money laundering (AML) measures, according to a recent evaluation by international financial regulators. However, the country still faces challenges in several areas, highlighting the need for further improvement.

FATF Evaluation Highlights

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an intergovernmental organization that sets global standards for AML and combating the financing of terrorism, evaluated Ghana’s compliance with its 40 recommendations. The report found that Ghana is largely compliant in certain areas, such as:

  • Assessing risk and applying a risk-based approach to anti-money laundering measures
  • Implementing national cooperation and coordination mechanisms
  • Laws and regulations related to confiscation and provisional measures

Challenges Remain

However, Ghana still faces challenges in several areas, including:

  • Laws and regulations on financial institution secrecy
  • Customer due diligence
  • Record keeping
  • Reliance on third parties
  • Reporting of suspicious transactions
  • Transparency and beneficial ownership of legal persons and arrangements

The report also highlighted the need for Ghana to:

  • Strengthen its regulation and supervision of financial institutions
  • Improve powers of supervisors
  • Better equip its financial intelligence unit to support anti-money laundering efforts

Government Commitment

Ghana’s Deputy Minister of Finance, John Amponteng, expressed commitment to addressing these challenges, saying “We recognize the importance of strengthening our AML/CFT regime and are committed to implementing the necessary reforms to ensure compliance with international standards.”

Progress in Other Areas

The report also acknowledged Ghana’s progress in other areas, including:

  • Implementation of targeted financial sanctions related to terrorism and terrorist financing
  • Efforts to regulate and supervise non-profit organizations

Conclusion

While Ghana has made significant strides in implementing AML measures, there is still much work to be done to ensure the country’s compliance with international standards. The government has pledged to continue working towards strengthening its AML/CFT regime to protect the integrity of its financial system and prevent money laundering and terrorist financing.