Jamaica will assume the Chair of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) in December at which time it will host the CFATF’s 59th Plenary.
This was noted last Friday by Finance Minister Dr Nigel Clarke, as he addressed the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Plenary in Singapore, where Jamaica was formally removed from the so-called ‘grey list’ of countries that are not fully compliant with their Anti-Money Laundering/Counter the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT framework.
CFATF is the regional arm of the FATF.
FATF’s recommendations constitute the international standards by which the preventative measures taken by each country to combat the risks posed by criminals who launder the proceeds of crime and finance terrorism, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction are assessed.
Jamaica was placed on the grey list in February 2020, following which the Government agreed to a 13-point action plan with FATF to address the country’s AML/CFT deficiencies
In its statement on the conclusion of the Plenary in Singapore, FATF welcomed “Jamaica's significant progress in improving its AML/CFT regime”.
It added that “Jamaica strengthened the effectiveness of its AML/CFT regime to meet the commitments in its action plan regarding the strategic deficiencies that FATF identified in February 2020”.
In his address, Clarke said “Jamaica takes great pride in our completion of the tremendous body of work involved in satisfying the requirements to exit the FATF’s ICRG (International Cooperation Review Group) increased monitoring process”.
“As such, we welcome the findings of the Joint Group, as reflected in their progress report on Jamaica, following their onsite visit to Jamaica where they confirmed Jamaica’s progress in completing our action plan,” he added.
Clarke pointed out that the Joint Group concluded that the AML/CFT/CPF (Countering Proliferation Financing) reforms and measures required by Jamaica are fully in place and that implementation is being sustained.
“This finding will allow Jamaica to close a challenging but extremely edifying chapter even as we begin a new one where we will consolidate and build on the achievements of this period. This chapter allowed us to develop a framework for ensuring that Jamaica’s AML/CFT/CPF infrastructure is always up-to-date, relevant, and tailored to our circumstances,” Clarke said.
“This framework will also support our broad-based economic programme, allow for greater financial inclusion and will serve us well as we continue to develop our financial, legal and law enforcement services while ensuring that we are in a good position to meet future evaluations,” he continued.