The Financial Action Task Force has said Nigeria and other countries on its grey list may not be removed from the list until they have complied with the task force’s requirements.
The FATF identified jurisdictions with weak measures to combat money laundering and terrorism financing in two FATF public documents issued three times a year.
The task force recently grey-listed Nigeria and South Africa, meaning that the country had committed to resolving the identified strategic deficiencies within agreed time frames and was subject to increased monitoring.
A report by the Institute for Security Studies said grey-listing a country could affect its economy as well as discourage investment.
“Some, for example, require fund managers to apply greater diligence before investing in grey-listed countries. An International Monetary Fund study estimates that countries have on average experienced capital outflows equal to 7.6 per cent of GDP after grey-listing,” the report titled, ‘Shades of grey,’ partly read.
However, our correspondent sent an email to the FATF to ask if it was satisfied with measures put in place by Nigeria to stop being grey-listed among others.
The FATF Media Team said Nigeria and other countries had pledged to address the issues, adding that it was left to the listed countries to quickly address the issues.
The institution, however, noted that a “high-level” commitment was required to fight money laundering and terrorism financing.
It read, “Each jurisdiction on the grey list has committed to an action plan to address the deficiencies in its mutual evaluation. It is up to the country to swiftly address each of the action plan items.
“This requires a high-level political commitment to driving through the necessary reforms. At each plenary, the FATF will reflect the jurisdiction’s progress in its public statements, until such time that the plenary decides that it has implemented all or most of its action plan items and can be removed from monitoring.”
When contacted, the spokesperson for the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, Sani Tukur said, “The director will address the press on the issue soon.”
