The Institute for Democratic Governance (IDEG), on 20th June 2023 organized a day’s training for NPOs with support from the Financial Intelligence Center (FIC) and the NPO secretariat to build capacity of sector actors on the implementation of AML/CFT Measures in Ghana.
In an opening remark, Mr Kwesi Jonah, a Senior Research Fellow at IDEG, underscored the important role of non-profit organization in upholding democracy and development. In the pursuit of their missions and goals, “NPOs face challenges including risks that could derail the contributions they make towards national development”, he stated.
According to Mr Jonah, post 9/11 the issues of money laundering and terrorism financing have taken centre stage in development discourse across the globe, and therefore IDEG as part of its work is implementing a project titled “Safeguarding NPOs in Ghana Against Financing from Terrorists” (SNIGAFFT), to, among other things, increased awareness of NPOs in Ghana on the implementation of AML/CFT measures and its impact on their operations.
The training was facilitated by resource persons from the FIC and the NPOs Secretariate. The sessions at the training focused on the “Regulatory Frameworks for the Implementation of AML/CFT Measures, FATF Recommendation Eight (R8), and the responsibilities of NPOs in Ghana.
Highlighting the importance of the training, Mr Douglas Quartey, a consultant to the SNIGAFFT project, stated that, NPOs are important stakeholders in supporting the country’s efforts at meeting the global standards of FATF.
Accordingly, it is imperative that actors in the NPO space are well abreast of their roles and contribution towards Ghana’s compliance to the FATF standards, he stated. He added, the training would improve understanding and enhance compliance of NPOs on the changes in the regulatory environment.