As part of efforts to exit the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list, government will establish a shared forensic capability within the Financial Intelligence Centre to strengthen efforts to exit the grey list.
“From the 2025 Medium‐Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) period onwards, funding will be reprioritised within the function to departments and entities to establish a shared forensic capability within the Financial Intelligence Centre,” National Treasury’s document on the 2024 Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) said.
Set to secure South Africa’s removal from the grey list
This will strengthen efforts to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism. It will also secure South Africa’s removal from the grey list.
Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana tabled the MTBPS in Parliament on Wednesday. He noted that South Africa recently received a positive review from the FATF.
South Africa is now deemed to have largely addressed 16 of the 22 action items. The development is part of its Action Plan to exit the grey list.
“This is a remarkable achievement. It was… brought about by the unprecedented cooperation between state departments, as well as with civil society.
“FATF lauded South Africa for improving how it dealt with issues of Anti-Money Laundering. Also on Countering the Financing of Terrorism. This leaves us with only six outstanding action items to be addressed. For the last scheduled reporting cycle in February 2025,” the minister said.
The FATF is the international standard-setting body that oversees global compliance with anti-money laundering rules.
On Monday, it was reported that South Africa is now deemed to have largely addressed 16 of the 22 action items. These as part of its Action Plan to exit the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list.
SA left with six outstanding action items to be addressed
This leaves the country with six outstanding action items to be addressed for the last scheduled reporting cycle.
The FATF grey list refers to the FATF’s practice of publicly identifying countries with strategic AML/CFT deficiencies. The FATF maintains two such lists. With one being jurisdictions under “increased monitoring”. These are actively working with the FATF to address strategic deficiencies in their regimes”. And secondly “high-risk jurisdictions subject to a call for action”. These are not actively engaging with the FATF to address these deficiencies.
- SAnews.gov.za
