As part of the celebration of its 20 years of existence, the Giaba organized a meeting at Somone to take stock, but also to make projections over the next 20 years.

In the context of the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT), a lot of efforts have been made over the last twenty years. Nevertheless, money laundering, the financing of terrorism and their proliferation continue to threaten peace and security, and undermine sustainable development in the ECOWAS region, said Kimélabalou Aba, Director General of Giaba.
The Intergovernmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa is celebrating its 20th anniversary. It is in this sense that he held a meeting at Somone to take stock of these years of exercise and make projections over the next 20 years.
Praising the results achieved by this regional institution, Judge Aba listed a series of achievements. "We have provided support to Member States in strengthening their legal frameworks, in line with the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), technical assistance for strengthening their institutional and regulatory frameworks and for building their capacities to improve compliance, thus contributing to good governance. States have been supported in conducting research and typologies to understand the risks, trends, methods and techniques used by criminals and their associates to launder money and finance terrorism, and to develop strategies to counter them...", explained the Dg. He added that since the adoption of these statutes in 2000, the Giaba has managed to include the financing of terrorism (Ft) in its mandate.
The Director General of Giaba did not fail to recount the legislative successes. "We have passed anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CF) laws by all member states. Inter-ministerial AML/FT Coordination Committees have been set up in the Member States, as well as Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs), some of which are now full members of the Egmont Group. It should be noted that when the Giaba started its activities, only two Member States had an RTC (Nigeria and Senegal)..."
So many results obtained thanks to the work done by his predecessors who laid the foundations on which he built and traced today a new path for the institution.
Despite this bleak picture, the DG acknowledged that major challenges lie ahead. He cited, among other things, "the weak political will to carry out the AML/FT process, insufficient funding for the implementation of AML/FT programmes, low capacity (both human and institutional) of Member States in the effective implementation of AML/FT measures, shortcomings in the national legal framework and in national coordination and collaboration between competent authorities".
With this record on its shoulders, the Giaba projects itself into the next 20 years and wants to be an institution that will make Africa proud. To this end, the Director-General calls on all actors to support the noble objectives of this institution. "Let us make our voice heard, let us speak up and blow on the embers of the fight against money laundering, the financing of terrorism with all the tools at our disposal," said Kimélabalou Aba.