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| Hon Ousman Sonko, Minister of the Interior delivering the statement of Finance Minister Kebba Touray (Photo Credit: LJahateh/GNJAML) |
He said the capacity of the Financial Intelligence
Unit has recently been strengthened with the recruitment of more dedicated
staff, in addition to the staff of the Banking Supervision department, of the
Central Bank, attached to the Unit.
FIU is one of the two institutions directly responsible
for implementing anti-money laundering and combating terrorism financing
measures in The Gambia.
The statement of the Finance Minister was read on
his behalf by the Minister of Interior, Ousman Sonko, on Tuesday at the commencement
of a three-day workshop for the development a national strategy to combat ML
and TF in The Gambia.
In the statement, the Finance Minister said The
Gambia government has also provided budget to the FIU to for its effective
operation.
The FIU is currently working closely with the commercial
banks in the country to put measures in place for the detection of suspicious financial
transactions for reporting purposes.
Also, the operations of Gambia National Drug
Enforcement Agency (NDEA), the other institution directly responsible for implementing
anti-money laundering and combating terrorism financing measures in The Gambia,
have been strengthened to prepare it for the enormous task ahead.
Besides, a committee of Chief Compliance Officers of
Banks in The Gambia was established, in line with the recommendation by FATF,
global standard-setters in the fight against ML and TF.
The committee serves as a forum for information
sharing on compliance issues between banks and it also seeks to network with
similar bodies outside The Gambia.
The Finance Minister said these measures in place
couple with the Anti-Money Laundering Act 2012 will fast-track the realization
of the overall objective of reducing crimes of money laundering and terrorism
financing to its barest minimum in The Gambia.
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