Scoping mission to Uruguay
2022-12-09 - 2022-12-12 | Uruguay, Uruguay
The EU Global Facility, represented by Senior Expert on Justice, Victoria Palau, conducted a scoping mission to Uruguay, which followed the request for technical assistance formulated by the Latin American country.
The aim of this visit, which consisted in a number of thematic meetings with local authorities and relevant entities, was to develop a plan of action to support the establishment of the first specialised prosecution on AML/CFT which will be in force in 2023. This request is related to FATF IO 7.
More specifically, meetings were held with:

– The National Coordination on AML/CFT (SENACLAFT), which will also provide technical assistance to the new prosecution on AML/CFT.
– The General Prosecution Office and the judiciary
– The Uruguayan Police
– The FIU.

All these stakeholders cover the penal chain and are involved in having an increase of ML/TF cases being investigated, prosecuted and sentenced.
This mission was then followed by the EU Global Facility’s participation in the GAFILAT’s Plenary and the Working Group on Training and Development.

Workshop for South Africa authorities/regulators on NPO Sectoral RA
2022-12-07 - 2022-12-09 | South Africa, South Africa
This workshop is targeted at the authorities and regulators from South Africa, with the aim of preparing the NPO Sectoral Risk Assessment.
It is part of a series of technical assistance activities delivered to the partner country to help it improve its AML/CFT framework.

Working visit on DNFBPs in the Seychelles
2022-12-06 - 2022-12-09 | The Seychelles, Seychelles
Yesterday, the EU Global Facility, led by Key Expert on Regulation/FIU Arnaud STIEN, kicked off a working visit in the Seychelles, which aims to deliver technical assistance to the competent authorities in charge of the supervision of the DNFBPs such as accountants, the gaming sector or legal professions.
In addition to training sessions, meetings were held with members of the Technical AMLCFT Coordination Committee (TACC), to support the effective coordination mechanism and the implementation of the national strategy on AML/CFT.
Entities involved encompassed the FIU, the Central Bank, Financial Services Authority, Anti-corruption Agency, Custom/revenue Authority, Seychelles Ministry of Finance, Trade, Investment and Economic Planning, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the AMLCFT resident advisor.

Rec 8 training for regulators/authorities of Lesotho
2022-11-30 - 2022-12-02 | Lesotho, Lesotho
This week, upon the request of the authorities of Lesotho and following the European Commission’s approval, the EU Global Facility launched its very first technical assistance activity in Lesotho.
The relevant stakeholders from the African country will attend the online training over the next three days, which will cover standards and requirements of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendation 8 on NPOs.
This is part of a series of technical assistance activities that the EU Global Facility provides to authorities and regulators of partner countries to help them strengthen their AML/CFT frameworks with regards to Not for Profit Organisations
This initial e-training will focus on

(i) Risk based supervision in the context of overall NPO regulation
(ii) How to set up a system of risk based NPO regulation including sector reviews, criteria and risk based focus and
(iii) Implementation of a risk based system.

Launch of TACC in DRC
2022-11-30 - 2022-12-02 | DRC, Congo, Democratic Republic of the
This Wednesday 25 November 2022, the EU Global Facility is in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo for the implementation and kick-off of the Technical Assistance Coordination Committee (TACC).
This mission will include a drafting exercise of the Technical Assistance Matrix that will support the implementation of the FATF Action plan and the distribution of work among all technical assistance providers.
The formal “kick-off” meeting is foreseen on 1st December in Kinshasa.

Working meeting on FATF Rec 8 with authorities/regulators of Jamaica
2022-11-22 | Jamaica, Jamaica
On Tuesday 22 November 2022, the EU Global Facility on AML/CFT organised a working meeting with the authorities of Jamaica, on the topic of FATF Recommendation 8 implementation.
This is the continuation of the work conducted over the few months on the NPO-related recommendation. This follow up meeting aimed to assess the progress made by the partner country, and agree on the steps to be taken by the authorities and regulators of Jamaica for the implementation of the FATF Rec 8 requirements.

Joint Regional workshop on asset recovery for the justice sector of Central Asia states
2022-11-22 - 2022-11-25 | Kazhakstan
This workshop on “Development of the capacities of the Law Enforcement Agencies of the Central Asian Countries in the field of Terrorist Assets Tracing and Recovery” is co-organised by the EU Global Facility and the Law Enforcement in Central Asia (LEICA) project, in close cooperation with the UNODC Office in Kyrgyzstan.
The workshop will seek to improve the capacity of law enforcement agencies in the countries of Central Asia to effectively identify, search, trace and seizure assets intended for the activities of terrorists or terrorist groups.
More specifically:

– To provide information concerning best international practice in the field of detection, search, trace and seizure of assets intended for the activities of terrorists or terrorist groups
– To share practical experience in using the financial investigations tools needed to trace and seize terrorist assets, including financial and criminal intelligence, interagency cooperation and mutual assistance in criminal matters
– Significantly to improve the capacities of the LEA of Central Asian countries in the field of financial investigations focused on search, tracing and seizure of Terrorists Assets.
– To support to mitigate the vulnerabilities of the state institutions in the field of identification, search, trace and seizure of assets intended for the activities of terrorists or terrorist groups.

BO scoping in the Seychelles
2022-11-21 - 2022-11-24 | The Seychelles, Seychelles
From Monday 21st of November 2022 to Thursday 24th, the EU Global Facility is conducting a scoping mission on Beneficial Ownership through probing exercise and training.
The four day onsite activity included

(i) A BO scoping through probing exercise aimed at identifying areas of improvement and possible mid-term activities to be delivered by the Global Facility (e.g. development of the legal framework, its implementation, risk based approach to BO supervision)
(ii) A one day training and discussion on the international BO standards, identification, verification and supervision of BO disclosure requirements.

Webinar on Beneficial Ownership Transparency and Complex Ownership Structures
2022-11-15
The EU Global Facility on Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism on Tuesday 15 November 2022 hosted a closed webinar on the topic of “Beneficial Ownership Transparency and Complex Ownership Structures”, which gathered representatives from international and regional organisations, BO Registers and competent authorities from partner countries, as well as experts from academia, the private sector and civil society.
The agenda included institutional speakers from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Secretariat and APGML as well as authorities from Austria and Belgium.
This was followed by several short presentations on cases of complex structures from a wide range of experts and topics including: corruption, money laundering, banking transactions, mafia-infiltration, tax avoidance, investment funds and extractive industries.
In his opening remarks, EU GF Team Leader David Hotte highlighted the emerging challenges stemming from such complex structures in the identification of BO and in the setting-up of effective disclosure systems within jurisdictions.
He thanked the panellists and large number of attendees. “With over 400 registered participants, this activity is a testimony to the need for further work to be conducted on this topic. The EU Global Facility will therefore continue its ongoing work in this domain.”
Our Key Expert on Beneficial Ownership Alexandre Taymans, described the work being carried by the project with partner countries and organisations, which includes bringing together experts from the public and private sector, as well as civil society representatives. He emphasised that “the composition of the panel and the wide range of expertise put together today, is a reflection of the multi-stakeholder engagement and enforcement strategies that will inevitably be required for BO disclosure systems to be made effective”.
He discussed the follow-up work to be conducted in this domain, which will involve discussing measures to address and reduce the risk of complexity affecting beneficial ownership transparency.

Workshop on ML and Financial Crimes Investigation Techniques for Representatives of the UAE Penal Chain
2022-11-15 - 2022-11-17 | The UAE, United Arab Emirates
“DEVELOPING INTELLIGENCE INTO EVIDENCE” is a workshop on Money Laundering and Financial Crimes Investigation Techniques for Representatives of the Penal Chain of the UAE.
Organised with the Ministry of Interior of the UAE, the activity gathers some 60 representatives from public prosecution, the FIU, police and the Ministry of Interior, among others.
This constitutes an innovative event conducted under the EU Global Facility’s Justice and LEA components. Cross-functional events are crucial to tackling AML/CFT, as they encompass numerous actors of the financial and investigation penal chain.
“Without intelligence, financial investigations cannot succeed. However, it is crucial for the judiciary and law enforcement agencies to collaborate to turn this intelligence into evidence admissible in court. This is why we are here today, to exchange and share information to ensure the best #cooperation in financial investigations,” said David Hotte, Team Leader of the EU GF during the opening session.
Opening speeches were also delivered by Brigadier Abdulaziz al Ahmed, deputy commander of the federal criminal police at MoI, chair of the national team in charge of money laundering investigations in the UAE, and Dr. Tariq Ahmed Al-Rashed from the Federal Public Prosecution.
Delivered by experts from Ireland and the Netherlands the workshop will cover a number of topics, including:

– Initial information in an investigation: Sources of initial information and intelligence (private citizens, security services)
– Sources of initial information and intelligence (private citizens, public services, security)
– Legislative Evidential and Intelligence requirements
– Use of intelligence in ML investigations: fictitious case study
– The seizure, conviction, and non-conviction-based confiscation of assets
– Asset Recovery – Disclosure in other jurisdictions

International Day against Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property
2022-11-14
Today is International Day against Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property, a topic central to the fight on AML/CFT.
“Held every year on 14 November, the International Day against Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property reminds the world that theft, looting and illicit trafficking of cultural property takes place in every country, robbing people of their culture, identity and history, and that we have to work together to combat this crime,” states the UNESCO on its website.
The fight against illicit trade of cultural goods is at the heart of the EU Global Facility’s work, which includes a series of regional conferences on “the use of Anti money Laundering & Countering Terrorist Financing (AMLCFT) in the investigation of Art and Antiquities Criminality”.
Started in Cairo in June 2022, the conferences seek to lead to the production of a manual on good practices and lessons learned on the fight against this traffic. The second iteration is foreseen in South East Asia in the beginning of 2023.

E-training of Kyrgyz prosecutors and FIU on asset recovery
2022-11-14 - 2022-11-18 | Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan

E-workshop on FATF Rec 8 for Zambia regulators/authorities
2022-11-09 - 2022-11-11 | Zambia, Zambia
This online workshop is targeted at the authorities and regulators from Zambia and aims to prepare the onsite workshop to be held in December 2022 in the partner country.
This will aim to ensure the re-rating of the country with regards to FATF Recommendation 8 implementation.

Joint EU Global Facility/GAFILAT/Panama Regional Conference on Beneficial Ownership
2022-11-07 - 2022-11-09 | Panama, Panama
Regional conference on Beneficial Ownership gathers 18 Latin American countries
Vice-minister of Finance in Charge of Panama, Manuel Sánchez O., on Monday inaugurated a regional conference on anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT) titled “Beneficial Ownership Disclosure Frameworks and risk-assessment of corporate vehicles in the GAFILAT Region”.
The event is witnessing the participation of 60 high-level experts from 18 Latin American countries.
Co-organised by the EU Global Facility, the GAFILAT Secretariat and the National Commission against Money Laundering, Financing of Terrorism and Financing of the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction of Panama (CNBC) of the Ministry of Economy and Finances of Panama (MEF).
“Panama has continued to strengthen its prevention system and technical capacities; therefore, we are aware that the fight against money laundering is a joint effort,” said vice-minister of Finance in Charge Sánchez.
Izabela Matusz, EU Ambassador to Panama, noted: “every country needs a transparent, reliable and sustainable financial system. In this way, it will defend itself against the influence of organised crime on its institutions and can protect the interests of the state and the nation.”
The regional event aims to allow participants to exchange and further their expertise on FATF standards on availability and accessibility of beneficial ownership information, the assessment of money laundering and terrorism financing risks associated with the misuse of legal persons and arrangements in the GAFILAT region, the design and implementation of mitigation measures as well as emerging trends and specific topics related to the ever increasing importance of beneficial ownership transparency throughout jurisdictions across the world.
In his welcoming remarks, EU GF Team Leader David Hotte, thanked the GAFILAT and Panamanian authorities for their support, noting: “we are particularly happy to see such a high level of attendance in this first regional conference the EU Global Facility is organising in Latin America. Panama has been a trusted partner country of the project, where we have delivered 10 activities since our first mission back in October 2021.”
“Support to partner countries’ Beneficial Ownership frameworks is a key pillar of the EU GF’s work around the globe. So far, we have assisted more than 11 jurisdictions in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe on BO at a bilateral level while reaching almost 70 countries through regional conferences.”
For his part, Executive Director of GAFILAT, Esteban Fullin, stated: “making Beneficial Ownership information available is key to having a successful AML/CFT system, GAFILAT is committed to mitigate any possible misuse of corporate vehicles to allow money launderers and criminal organisations to profit their illicit gains. Having the chance to share experiences and discuss good practices on how to tackle this issue is key to implement an effective system.”

E-training of NPOs on FATF Rec 8 for Argentina
2022-11-01 - 2022-11-04 | Argentina, Argentina
This e-training of NPOs on the FATF Rec 8 is the first activity implemented with the representatives of the CSOs of Argentina.
It aims at raising their awareness and knowledge of the requirements of FATF Recommendation 8.
The event will also serve to prepare NPO contribution to the NPO Sectoral Risk Review to be conducted by the authorities/regulators of Argentina with the support provided by the EU Global Facility.

E-training on NPO sectoral Risk Assessment for South African regulators/authorities
2022-10-27 - 2022-10-28 | South Africa, South Africa
The e-training will target South African regulators and authorities and cover the topic of “NPO sectoral Risk Assessment”
The two-day activity aims to support the partner country’s authorities in the preparation of its workplan for the elaboration of the NPO Sectoral Risk Assessment.
It is part of a series of activities organised by the EU Global Facility to support South Africa to enhance its AML/CFT measures and improve its general framework.

Scoping mission to Mozambique
2022-10-26 - 2022-11-02 | Mozambique, Mozambique
A delegation of the EU Global Facility on AML/CFT, led by Team Leader David Hotte and Senior Expert on Justice Victoria Palau was in Mozambique to conduct a scoping mission from 26 October to 2 November 2022.
Organised to respond to the request for technical assistance recently submitted by the Mozambican authorities, the mission started with a meeting with the Technical Multisectorial Group on AML/CFT of Mozambique, composed of representatives from various ministries and institutions, and chaired by the national coordination/Director General of the FIU.
The EU GF team then met with a number of relevant local stakeholders, including the director of the FIU and members of his team.
This mission will ultimately aim to establish a work programme in line with the EU GFT rules of engagement and principles.
The scoping mission was conducted jointly with a representative of the AML/THB Great Horn of Africa project and will be coordinated by the EU Delegation in Maputo.

Workshop on Beneficial Ownership registers as new competent authorities in Malta
2022-10-26 - 2022-10-28 | Malta, Malta
Beneficial Ownership experts from EU convene in Malta for experts working group
Valetta, 28 October 2022 – The EU Global Facility on Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (EU GF-AML/CFT) on Wednesday 26th of October 2022 launched the second meeting of its Expert Working Group on the topic of “Beneficial Ownership Registers as Competent Authorities”, in cooperation with the Malta Business Registry (MBR).
Gathering 19 experts from 12 EU Member States, the session follows a kick off event that took place in Brussels in June 2022, where discussions revolved around the topics of Beneficial Ownership (BO) Registers evolving into competent authorities, which included discussion on verification of BO information, onsite supervision, typologies and trends analysis. Malta was represented by Dr Geraldine Spiteri Lucas from the MBR and Mr Alfred Zammit from the FIAU.
“Our ultimate goal is to ‘handbook’ tangible proposals and best practices that can be made available to stakeholders and jurisdictions who are seeking to build or enhance national beneficial ownership capabilities,” explained EU Global Facility Key Expert on Beneficial Ownership Alexandre Taymans, noting that “the purpose of these sessions is to delve deeper into the topic, discuss challenges and lessons that can be learnt and applied for technical assistance to the benefit of the EU GF partner countries. This way we can put forward an approach for more effective national and cross border beneficial ownership disclosure frameworks.”
For her part Dr Geraldine Spiteri Lucas, MBR Chief Executive Officer, explained Malta’s experience in arriving where it is today, which is having an accurate and an up-to-date Beneficial Ownership Register. ‘The effectiveness of the BO Register revolved around accuracy and accessibility by competent authorities and subject persons. Most importantly, it is crucial to have all the entities work together hand in hand. It is indeed of great pleasure for Malta to have welcomed representatives from registries across Europe discussing a subject that is dominating amongst registers fora’ said Dr. Spiteri Lucas.
Alfred Zammit, Deputy Director at the Financial Intelligence Unit of Malta, explained that Beneficial Ownership registries are becoming an increasingly important component in the fight against ML/FT, but transitioning from a registry to a competent authority is easier said than done. Sharing best practice and exploring different forms of cooperation, including with FIUs and other authorities, is therefore very-much needed and a step that we and the community all stand to gain from.
Support to partner countries’ Beneficial Ownership frameworks is a key pillar of the EU Global Facility on AML/CFT’s work around the globe. So far, the project has assisted more than 11 jurisdictions in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe at a bilateral level. A number of regional conferences was also organised to enhance international cooperation in this regard.

National conference on supervision of lawyers and accountants in Jordan
2022-10-25 - 2022-10-26 | Jordan
The EU AML/CFT Global Facility and the Jordanian National Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing Committee (NAMLCTFC) are organising a two-day workshop on “Training in AML/CFT for legal professionals and accountants”, targeted at some 90 participants from Jordan.
The workshop will be divided into two thematic days consisting of an outreach workshop on ML/TF for legal professionals and accountants. More specifically it will review how legal professions and accountants, and their self-regulated bodies, adequately apply AML/CFT preventive measures commensurate with their risks, and report suspicious transactions.
In the second day, a technical training for ML/TF self-regulated bodies will be delivered. It will tackle ways in which self-regulated bodies of legal professions and accountants supervise, monitor and regulate legal professions and accountants with AML/CFT requirements commensurate with their risks.
The objectives of the outreach programme are to ensure that:

o Operators in the regulated accountant and legal professional sectors become familiar with obligations such as KYC, customer due diligence, STRs reporting and the risk-based approach;
o Their self-regulated bodies become familiar with basics AML/CFT requirements, and their supervisory and monitoring tasks: supervision, monitoring of legal professions and accountants for compliance with AML/CFT requirements commensurate with their risks;
o The outreach programme is also designed as a pedagogical tool to enable the regulators to educate and support DNFBPs in understanding and implementing their obligations.

3rd Meeting of the High Level Experts Working Group
2022-10-25 - 2022-10-27 | Jordan
High level experts from the judiciary and financial intelligence fields will partake in a two-day meeting organised by the EU Global Facility on Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (EU GF-AML/CFT) in cooperation with the Siracusa International Institute on criminal justice and human rights.
Held in Aqaba, Jordan, this will mark the third in a series of collaborative meetings held under the title “Assessing the scope and effectiveness of innovative legal approaches to money laundering (ML) investigations and asset recovery”.
This third edition of the event aimed at reviewing the replies received from different international institutions on the questionnaire elaborated during the previous meetings and shared with the relevant international fora.
Ultimately, these activities seek to lead to the production of a far-reaching study on existing good practice that alleviate the burden of proof in ML investigations and asset recovery procedures. The results of the study shall provide a valuable resource for the work of relevant global and regional institutions (e.g. FATF, FSRBs, EU and UN relevant structures etc.), as well as national authorities and justice sectors.

The Experts Working Group is part of a series of activities organised by the EU GF-AML/CFT and the Siracusa International Institute aimed at strengthening international judicial co-operation and the efficient application of existing MLA standards and international instruments by judges and prosecutors.

Virtual assets National risk assessment methodology in Jordan
2022-10-23 - 2022-10-24 | Jordan
“There is no right or wrong way to develop a national risk assessment methodology on virtual assets. The only right way is the one that WORKS for your country,” says our Italian expert specialised on the investigation of complex financial crime schemes (cryptocurrency, hacking incidents, ransomware scams).
She speaks during Day 2 of our workshop on Virtual Assets national risk assessment methodology in Amman, Jordan ????????.
The two-day event witnesses the participation of representatives from the Central Bank, the Judicial Council, the Public Security Directorate, The Anti Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing Unit and the Jordan Securities Commission, among others.
Led by our Key Expert on Regulation/FIU Arnaud Stien, the training is being delivered by Egyptian expert on virtual assets Amr Rashed as well as experts from Mauritius and Italy.
Topics covered during the workshop include:

–The status of virtual assets in Jordan
– FATF Requirements
– Risk Assessment of Virtual Assets building blocks
– The current state of VASPs in Jordan
– Stages of risk assessment
– Examples from other Risk Assessments
– The way forward with Jordan’s VA Risk Assessment

This training is part of a series of four activities organised in Amman this week, including a regional conference on “AML/CFT for Legal Professionals and Accountants” taking place on Tuesday 25 October 2022.

Exchange sessions Panama/EU asset recovery offices
2022-10-20 - 2022-11-04 | Panama, Panama
???????? A series of online sessions is being organised by the EU Global Facility on “Asset Recovery: Presentation of different models of Asset Recovery Offices in the European Union”.
Following the recent onsite activity on AML and tax crime organised in October in Panama, the Panama General Prosecutor Office expressed the country’s interest in learning about EU models and best practices on assets recovery.
As a result, the EU GF organised a number of e-sessions with representatives from the Assets Recovery Offices (AROs) from France, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Ireland.
Sessions, which began on 20 October, are scheduled to take place throughout the two coming weeks, targeted at around 15 senior prosecutors from Panama.
Ultimately, these activities will inform the new law on assets recovery currently being discussed at Panama’s Parliament.

E-workshop on FATF REC 8 Risk Assessment elaboration for the Seychelles
2022-10-20 - 2022-10-21 | The Seychelles, Seychelles
On 20-21 October, the EU Global Facility will continue its technical assistance activities with the Seychelles, with the delivery of an online workshop on the subject of FATF Recommendation 8.
This online workshop will be targeted at the regulators and competent authorities from the partner country and will focus on the preparation of a workplan for the elaboration of the NPO Sectoral risk assessment.

REC 8 e training for Argentina's regulators
2022-10-17 - 2022-10-21 | Argentina, Argentina
On 17-19 October 2022, the EU Global Facility is officially launching its engagement with new Latin American partner country, Argentina.
The project is delivering an e training on FATF REC 8 for Regulators.
This activity will serve to create the basis for the follow up work envisaged by the EU GF, namely an engagement workplan that includes the preparation of the Sectoral NPO Risk Assessment for Argentina.

IO 7 workshop in Panama
2022-10-11 - 2022-10-14 | Panama, Panama
Panama receives several training on money laundering, tax offence from EU-funded Global Facility
Panama City, 10 October 2022 – The EU-funded Global Facility on AML/CFT on Monday launched a series of training on anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT) in Panama City, which aim to support the country’s efforts to enhance its AML/CFT system.
Co-organised with the National Commission against Money Laundering, Financing of Terrorism and Financing of the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (CNBC) of Panama, the training will span over the course of three days, targeting some 50 participants from various Panamean entities.
Experts from Andorra, France, Germany, Ireland, Spain and Ukraine will deliver sessions on the topic of tax crime committed abroad as well as the importance of international cooperation in combating those crimes.
Opening the event, the presiding magistrate María Eugenia López Arias highlighted such an important event and thanked for sparing no effort in designing and implementing this training and support program, in obtaining a product made to measure for the needs of our country, taking into account all the angles that are generated by the inter-institutional participation required by the effective war against money laundering and the financing of terrorism and weapons of mass destruction.
“The Republic of Panama, without a doubt, is determined to sharpen the pencil in its strategies and rectify the deficiencies, so that the crimes and activities of money laundering are investigated and their authors prosecuted and subjected to effective, proportional and dissuasive”, maintained the presiding magistrate.
For his part, Vice-minister of Finance of Panama, Jorge Almengor, stated:“Panama has the capacity to investigate and prosecute tax crime commited abroad, as well as to provide constructive and timely international cooperation. Since Panama considered tax offenses as a predicate offense of ML in 2019, various investigations have been initiated, generated either by the use of UAF products, international cooperation, the Task Force or by the Public Ministry based on the Action Protocol. This reflects the good inter-institutional coordination and effectiveness of our system.”
The training is part of a series of activities organised by the EU Global Facility to support Panama in strengthening its AML/CFT frameworks and upholding its compliance standards in this regard. More specifically, the technical assistance focuses on Panama’s fulfilment of the immediate results 5 and 7 of the Financial Action Task Force as adapted to the needs and priorities established by Panama.
“Organised crime and terrorism threaten our peaceful coexistence and it is on the basis of national and international collaboration that we must combat illicit movements of capital under a clear and joint vision, based on the experience of the international organisations that promote a state of welfare and justice,” said Adolfo Campos, Charge d’Affaires a.i. of the EU Delegation to Panama in his welcoming remarks.

E-training on Asset Confiscation & Management for DRC
2022-10-10 - 2022-10-14 | DRC, Congo, Democratic Republic of the
Last week, the EU Global Facility delivered an e-training on Asset Confiscation and Management to representatives of the Fonds de Lutte contre le Crime Organisé – FOLUCO from the DRC.
Delivered by the Director of the Central Organ for Seizure and Confiscation (OCSC) of Belgium, Jean-Michel Verelst, the 5-day activity covered topics such as the management of seized assets, informal international cooperation (via ARO/CARIN networks) and a number of case studies.
This course follows the recent working visit conducted last August in the DRC

IO 5 workshop in Panama
2022-10-10 - 2022-10-14 | Panama, Panama
Public and Private sector Beneficial Ownership training in Panama
Enhancing capacity and coordination of AML/CFT actors
Panama City, 10-13 October 2022 – A capacity building training on “Implementation, Management and Use of the Beneficial Ownership Registration System” was delivered this week by the EU Global Facility on AML/CFT in cooperation with the National Commission against Money Laundering, Financing of Terrorism and Financing of the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (CNBC) of Panama and the Superintendencia de Sujetos no Financieros, as part of a program aimed at supporting the country’s sustained efforts to strengthen its AML/CFT system.
This event included various stakeholders of the beneficial ownership disclosure cycle in Panama, including Supervisors and competent authorities (e.g., UAF, DGI, Public Registry, Supervision Authorities), the SSNF, Resident agents and other DNFBPs.
This series of events witnessed the attendance of the Vice-Minister of Finance, Jorge Almengor, the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs, Marta Elida Gordón, the Superintendent of the SSNF, Dayra Carrizo Castillero and the Charge d’Affaires a.i. of the EU Delegation to Panama, Adolfo Campos.
Opening the weeklong event, the Vice-minister of Finance of Panama, Jorge Almengor, stated: “ “We reiterate our country’s commitment, which is shown by our concrete actions to strengthen the money laundering and terrorist financing prevention system,”. Almengor highlighted that the presentation of the Guide is generated as part of the implementation of Law No. 129 of March 17, 2020, which creates the Single Private System for the Registry of Final Beneficiaries of Legal Entities and its regulatory Decrees.
Vice-Minister Gordón emphasized that “(The) initiatives such as this Guide, are part of the fundamental building blocks of the regulatory and operational reforms which allow us to guarantee the integrity and transparency of all legal persons and arrangements throughout the country, in accordance with the international standards which we have committed to ».
For its part, the SSNF underlined the importance of the work undertaken by Panama and SSNF over the last few years to achieve delisting from the FATF list. “It has involved the establishment of a legal framework in line with international standards, but also the development of tools to assist the private sector and resident agents in their work of identifying, verifying and registering beneficial owners,” explained Dayra Carrizo, Superintendent of SSNF.
She added: “The effectiveness of the mechanisms put in place in Panama depends on the commitment of all stakeholders, and noted the importance resident agents are playing in the institutional set-up of Panama for which they are a key component. These workshops aimed to strengthen the basis for coordination between these stakeholders which commitment is paramount for Panama to be able to demonstrate the effectiveness of the measures taken to ensure the availability and accessibility of BO information in Panama.”
Over the course of four days, more than 500 participants attended the training onsite and online.
“This demonstrate the huge interest and commitment in the subject matter, and is the materialisation of the efforts undertaken by Panama with regards to its compliance with the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) requirements related to transparency of legal persons and arrangements, amongst the most challenging FATF Recommendation, and one for which the effectiveness of the measures taken is likewise most difficult to establish and demonstrate,” stated Alexandre Taymans, Key Expert on Beneficial Ownership for the EU Global Facility.
Experts from the SSNF and the Global Facility delivered sessions covering a wide range of topics including the FATF and EU standards, the newly published SSNF’s Beneficial Ownership Guidance, the practical functioning of the Panamanian BOR, the role and strategy of the SSNF to guarantee compliance with the Beneficial Ownership identification and registration requirements. The sessions also included various case studies and examples that fostered discussion between participants on how, in practice, beneficial owners should be identified and their information verified.

EU GF/CEPOL regional conference on REC 8 in Tunisia
2022-10-10 - 2022-10-12 | Tunisie, Tunisia
Today, Monday 10 October 2022, the EU Global Facility kicked off a three-day regional workshop in Tunis ???????? on the implementation of the FATF Recommendation 8 for the representatives of Law Enforcement Agencies and CSOs from the MENA region.
The regional workshop is co-organised with CEPOL and the UNOCT with the active involvement of the Global NPO Coalition on FATF.
Titled “Countering Financing Terrorism and Risk Assessment of the NPO Sector”, the event is also witnessing the participation of representatives from Argentina ????????, Turkiye ????????and the Republic of Moldova ????????.
“The co-organised nature of this event, as well as the audience representing various players engaged in the implementation of @FATF Rec 8, embody the approach followed by the EU GF to ensure dialogue and coordination between parties. These are pre-requisites for the effective implementation of the requirements of said Recommendation,” said EU GF Team Leader David Hotte in his opening remarks.
The workshop was opened with the statements by the co-organisers, as well as the EU Delegation in Tunis and the representatives of the host country.
The programme of the regional workshop will be built around a number of thematic areas, namely:

– Actual CFT trends in the NPO sector
– The NPO sector Risk Assessment process
– Data collection
– Assessing Inherent Risk

E-workshop on BO for the Seychelles
2022-10-06 | The Seychelles, Seychelles

E-training on investigation and prosecution of financial crimes for South African Justice/LEAs
2022-10-03 - 2022-10-07 | South Africa, South Africa
Launch of our joint Justice/Law Enforcement Agencies e-training for South Africa today. ????????
With this weeklong activity, the EU Global Facility continues its technical assistance activities with the authorities of South Africa, which started last week.
Attended by more than 75 representatives of the LEAs and prosecution of the partner country, the online training focuses on the investigation and prosecution of financial crimes. It also marks our first activity with the partner state under the Justice and LEA components.
