Financial Crime World

Title: Tunisia’s Progress in Fighting Financial Crimes: MENAFATF Evaluates AML/CFT Measures

Background

The Middle East and North Africa Financial Action Task Force (MENAFATF) recently released an assessment report on Tunisia’s efforts to combat money laundering and terrorism financing. The report, compiled by the World Bank and adopted as a MENAFATF mutual evaluation report on April 3, 2007, outlines Tunisia’s compliance with the FATF 40+9 recommendations as of January 16-28, 2006.

Key Findings

  • Well-developed financial sector: Tunisia’s economy, with a GDP of $28.7 billion (2005), has a relatively well-developed financial sector. However, it is not a major international financial market due to exchange control measures and capital account restrictions.
  • Low risk, but room for improvement: The Tunisian authorities consider the risk of money laundering and terrorist financing to be low. Yet they recognize the importance of improving their anti-money laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism (CFT) framework for meeting international standards.

Compliance with International Standards

  • AML/CFT legislation: Law 2003-75, Tunisia’s key AML/CFT legislation, is largely in line with international standards. It includes provisions for criminalizing money laundering and terrorist financing, customer identification, transaction reporting, and institutional measures.
  • Ongoing implementation: The implementation of Law 2003-75 is ongoing. Tunisia faces challenges in establishing a specialized unit for analyzing suspicious transactions, resolving ambiguities in reporting requirements, and addressing the practical implications of freezing assets under international resolutions.

Progress in AML/CFT Measures

  • Customer identification: Tunisian financial institutions are in the process of implementing AML/CFT measures, and significant progress has been made in areas such as customer identification.
  • Financial intelligence unit: The establishment of a financial intelligence unit (Unit Control and Combating Money Laundering - UCCL) has been initiated.

Areas for Improvement

  • Enhancing the CTAF: The report highlighted the need to enhance the capacity of the Tunisian Financial Analysis Commission (CTAF).
  • Clarifying reporting obligations: There is a need to clarify reporting obligations and ensure effective implementation.
  • Anonymous cash certificates and capitalization bonds: MENAFATF suggested addressing the issue of anonymous cash certificates and capitalization bonds in the Tunisian banking sector.

Conclusion

Despite challenges in key areas, Tunisia has made substantial progress in its efforts to modernize its financial sector and address potential vulnerabilities to financial corruption and terrorist financing. The MENAFATF report will serve as an important benchmark for Tunisian authorities as they work to strengthen their AML/CFT framework and meet international standards.

References