By Ariana Gordon
WHILE Guyana has significantly improved its overall level of compliance with the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) and just half of a requirement is left to be fulfilled by Guyana, Minister of Legal Affairs Basil Williams said he is worried that the country is at risk for de-risking.De-risking, he explained, is where international corresponding banks refuse to do business with Guyana, and this would hinder “inflows and remittances” that enter the country.
“If you don’t satisfy the requirements, you could be blacklisted. Even now we are at risk for de-risking where international corresponding banks would refuse to do business with us. This whole question of de-risking is so serious, that they are proposing to hold a conference on de-risking in July in Miami for the entire hemisphere,” said Minister Williams.
The Minister of Legal Affairs says he is doing all he can to ensure that Guyana is not a victim of de-risking. “It is a bothersome issue because certain countries in the region have lost corresponding banks …It is a terrible thing.”
All of the legislative provisions with respect to remedying deficiencies have been accepted by CFATF, the Minister disclosed, noting that all that is left to be done relates to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) established under the 2009 Anti-Money Laundering Countering of Financing of Terrorism (AML /CFT) Act.
The FIU is tasked with requesting, receiving, analysing and disseminating suspicious transaction reports and other information related to money laundering and terrorist financing, as well as those related to proceeds from criminal acts.
Guyana is currently in the third round and is on the verge of exiting that round. Meetings, Minister Williams said, are being held with stakeholders such as the Bank of Guyana (BOG), FIU, commercial banks and non-financial institutions.
The Government of Guyana is also responsible for ensuring that stakeholders identified are trained accordingly.
MAJOR NEW DEVELOPMENTS
Meanwhile, CFATF’s 10th follow-up report on Guyana, dated May 13, indicates that there have been “major new developments” here given the enactment of the Anti-money Laundering/ Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) (Amendment) Act No.2 of 2015 and the AML/CFT (Amendment) Act No. 15 of 2016 in May.
“These statutes sought to address the legislative amendments required by the examiners’ recommended actions in the core and key recommendations and a majority of the remaining outstanding recommendations,” said Williams.
He noted too that the country’s overall compliance has improved, with Recommendations 1, 5, 8, 12, 15, 16, 33, 35, 37, and Special Recommendations I, 2, and 3 as well as 4 meeting all recommended actions. Additionally, the report states that there has been “substantial improvement in the compliance of Recs. 17, 22, 23, 24, 25, SR.V, SR.VI and SR.VII.” and noted that Guyana should be commended for its improvement in compliance.
It was recommended that in order to demonstrate continued implementation, government should continue to submit information for each report regarding the provision of training, both to the competent authorities and the financial institutions, the on-site AML/CFT inspection activity of the BoG, the Guyana Securities Council (GSC) and Chief Cooperative Development Officer (CCDO) and the various statistical information required under Recommendation 32.
IMPROVED COMPLIANCE
“As indicated above, Guyana has significantly improved its overall level of compliance. However, due to the remaining outstanding recommended actions it is recommended that Guyana stay in enhanced follow-up and be required to report to the next Plenary in November 2016.”
Asked whether he is concerned about the lack of support coming from the opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), Minister Williams said, “We are not worried about the PPP whether they want to support us or not, because they haven’t been supporting anything period.”
He said the APNU+AFC coalition government had inherited a system whereby the Government of Guyana under the former administration was cited three times in a public statement by CFATF and on those occasions CFATF warned its members to take counter measures to protect its systems against Guyana.
“We met Guyana in the FATF system with many recommendations outstanding and we have moved from that position to where I sit now to only one remaining recommendation which was partially met. So it is half of a recommendation that is left. We are confident that we have remedied that remaining half of the recommendation that was left,” he added.
Williams said he is currently looking at proposals to exit the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) process. Guyana, he noted, is required to participate in an America’s Regional Review Group (ARRG) meeting on the side of the CFATF meeting scheduled for Jamaica in June.
“The fact that the ARRG has asked us to meet with them in the margins of the CFATF meeting shows you that there is nothing much of consequence left to discuss, because the last time we had to go to Panama… after that meeting they said we only have a part of a recommendation to satisfy. Now they haven’t asked us to meet them in any country, but asked to meet them at the CFATF meeting.”
The Minister of Legal Affairs assured reporters that Guyana has completed all requirements with respect to the action plan that existed with FATF.
“To exit the process we hope that in Korea we’d be able to get a decision that there should be an onsite visit to Guyana. That starts the process. You have to have an onsite visit where the ARRG comes, and make their assessment.”
The Korea meeting is scheduled for one week after the CFATF meeting in Jamaica.
STAFFING FIU
On the issue of the staffing for the FIU, Minister Williams said that issue rests with the committees set up within the National Assembly. He accused the PPP of examining criteria for important matters in an exhaustive manner, noting that “the history of looking at criteria under the past government will take an eternity if not the entire life of the Parliament.”
The PPP’s Chief Whip Gail Teixeira had said her party is of the view that Guyana is slipping on its commitments to FATF, as there is currently no Director or Deputy Director of the FIU or an Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Authority in place.
“The FIU is headless and therefore many aspects of the AML/CFT Act cannot be put into operation and if it is, it would be in violation of the law,” the PPP Chief Whip had said. It was however noted that the Parliamentary Committee of Appointment is addressing applications for the FIU, including Deputy Director, Accountant and Lawyer as provided for in the amended Anti-Money Laundering Act 2015.
Williams said the appointment of persons for the FIU and the AML/CFT Authority should have been completed by now and blamed the PPP for its delay.
“This whole thing was affected by the PPP not taking up their seats at the beginning of this parliament… they stayed away for several months so no committee could be established. The irresponsibility being exhibited on the part of the opposition; they are not showing any interest in the welfare or well-being of the Guyanese people and Guyanese economy,” he added.