Anti-money-laundering conference opens

Accra, May 5, GNA - A two-day conference, which aims at ensuring that legislations on anti-money laundering in West Africa were reviewed and tightened to march with international standards, opened in Accra on Monday.

The Ninth Inter-Governmental Action Group Against Money Laundering (GIABA) Technical Commission meeting has attracted members from the sub-region.

During the meeting countries would be urged to set up State Financial Intelligence Units housed in central banks to process financial data on people engaged in suspicious monetary ventures. Opening the conference Dr Sam G. Amoo, National Security Coordinator, said Ghana was committed to implement laws that would fight money laundering.

Dr Amoo said Ghana's anti-money laundering bill had received presidential accent adding that the government had set up Financial Intelligence Centre that would handle data and coordinate activities on money laundering.

He said this was to ensure that people would not have their free way and use the country as transit point for their operations. Dr Amoo said Ghana was also reviewing its legislation on money laundering to deter recalcitrant citizens from engaging in such activities.