In Togo, decentralized finance systems get Expertise France’s support to fight money laundering.

Economic governance
Monday, 22 November 2021 15:06
In Togo, decentralized finance systems get Expertise France’s support to fight money laundering.

(Togo First) - Actors of decentralized finance systems (DFS) took part last week in a two-day workshop on anti-laundering. The meeting which closed on Friday was organized by Expertise France and the Togolese cell that handles financial information (CENTIF-Togo).

Around 40 representatives from local DFS attended the meeting. They were trained by two experts who came from Benin and Senegal.

According to the CENTIF, microfinance institutions, both in Togo and the ECOWAS in general, are especially exposed to the laundering threat because they are poorly informed about their obligations regarding anti-laundering.

"SFDs are particularly exposed to the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing, as indicated by the national risk assessments and mutual evaluations conducted by the Intergovernmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA)," said El Hadj Tchaa Bignossi Zakari Aquitème, representing the Togolese Ministry of Economy and Finance, at the opening ceremony.

Togo is the fourth country in the region to host this workshop. Benin, Senegal, and Ivory Coast preceded it. The training session is part of a project named "Organised crime: West African Response to Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism (OCWAR-M)". The latter is financed by the European Union.

"OCWAR-M has a budget of about 4,430 million CFA francs (6.75 million euros), for a duration of 47 months, going from March 2019 to January 2023," commented Dr Piero Valabrega, program officer of the Delegation of the European Union in Togo.

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