Necessary actions taken for finance sector to remain vibrant, says Roshi Bhadain

Government is taking necessary actions to ensure that the finance sector remains vibrant so as to attract investors for the right reasons. Operating in transparency and respecting international norms and standards are among the various incentives put in place so that Mauritius remains competitive at the international level and safeguard its own economy.

This statement was made on Wednesday by the Minister of Financial Services, Good Governance and Institutional Reforms, Mr Roshi Bhadain, at the opening of a three-day workshop on National Money Laundering Risk Assessment, being held at Le Meridien Hotel, Pointe aux Piments.

The Minister underscored that the workshop will raise awareness about different types of risks related to a country and the proper allocation of resources to mitigate possible threats through a risk-based approach.

He underlined that a framework designed to prevent money laundering and combat terrorist financing is most successful when it targets resources where they will be most effectively used. He further added that there is a need to use available resources for the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing.

The National Risk Assessment is an effective framework designed to prevent money laundering and combat terrorist financing. This risk-based approach seeks to ensure that anti-money laundering and combating financing of terrorism regimes support measures corresponding to the involved risks.

The workshop will focus on the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force for countries to identify, assess and understand money laundering risks within their specific contexts. To help this happen, the World Bank has developed a Risk Assessment advisory package to support countries in conducting their risk assessment through a systematic and organised process in view of helping countries to identify their risks and build a longer term capacity to sustain hazard.

Some 135 participants from different financial institutions are attending the workshop, organised by the Ministry of Financial Services, Good Governance and Institutional Reforms in collaboration with Financial Intelligence Unit and the World Bank. It will focus on the review and discussion of risk assessment results, the design of risk-based action plans and the issues related to its implementation.

The participants, after discussions and brainstorming, are expected to design a roadmap for the execution of a risk assessment methodology under the guidance of the representatives from World Bank. The themes that will be discussed are: threat analysis; national vulnerability; banking sector; securities sector; insurance sector; offshore sector; other financial institutions and Designated Non-Financial Business Professions.