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Tonga’s Fight Against Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Fails to Meet International Standards

A recent assessment by the Asia-Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG) has revealed that Tonga’s efforts to combat money laundering and terrorism financing are falling short of international standards. The island nation, which enacted the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Organised Crime Act in 2013, has failed to address several key deficiencies in its anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CFT) measures.

Key Shortcomings

• Tonga’s AML/CFT framework is largely ineffective, with many of the recommendations from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) still unimplemented.
• The country lacks a risk-based approach to AML/CFT, and fails to provide adequate training and resources to its authorities and private sector entities.

Report Highlights

• Lack of enforceable regulations
• Inadequate powers and responsibilities of competent authorities
• Insufficient international cooperation
• Outdated National Risk Assessment (NRA) that lacks consultation with regional stakeholders and partners
• Mixed understanding of money laundering risks among government authorities, law enforcement agencies, and private sector entities
• No systematic and regular consultation with regional stakeholder organizations and partners in preparing the NRA

Concerns over National AML/CFT Policy

• The National AML/CFT Policy 2018-2022 is generally in line with identified money laundering and terrorism financing risks, but lacks priority areas such as increasing resources to the Anti-Money Laundering Authority (TRA) to enable comprehensive risk-based supervision.

Call for Action

The report calls on Tonga to take immediate action to address these deficiencies and implement a comprehensive AML/CFT regime that meets international standards. Failure to do so could result in further sanctions and reputational damage for the country.