Namibia Addresses Four of 13 Greylisting Issues

Namibia has addressed four out of the 13 strategic deficiencies that led to the country being greylisted.

In February 2024, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) - a global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog - greylisted Namibia, essentially putting the country under stricter economic monitoring and regulation. After a plenary meeting on Friday in Paris, the FATF confirmed that Namibia continues to make progress in addressing the deficiencies in the action plan adopted at the time of greylisting.

Bryan Eiseb, director of the Financial Intelligence Centre, says Namibia needs to remediate all 13 identified deficiencies by May 2026 in order to be removed from the list. "We are pleased with the progress made by Namibia and as recognised by the FATF. This shows that our commitment to addressing these issues is being taken seriously," says Eiseb.

According to Eiseb, Namibia's action plan aims to strengthen domestic anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing frameworks.

Eiseb says apart from the four action items which have been "largely addressed", the remaining items in the action plan have been partially addressed, with one item yet to be tackled.

The next reporting cycle - before the next FATF assessment in May - will focus on legal entities filing beneficial ownership information with the Business and Intellectual Property Authority (Bipa). This requirement is considered a key step in enhancing transparency and preventing the misuse of legal entities for illicit purposes.

"We encourage all companies and close corporations who have not done so to file their beneficial ownership information with Bipa as required by law. The timely filing of this information will enhance Namibia's chances of an enhanced rating by the FATF in May 2025," says Eiseb.

May's assessment will determine Namibia's progress and the possibility of being removed from the greylist.

Read the original article on Namibian.

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