Republic of Mauritius- Strengthening the effectiveness of the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism regime

This statement was made by the Minister of Financial Services and Good Governance, Mr Mahen Seeruttun, today, at the National Assembly, during the second reading of the Anti-Money Laundering and Combatting the Financing of Terrorism (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2020.

Minister Seeruttun highlighted that this Bill is another step to reinforce the local legal framework and thus consolidate the country’s robust foundation to strengthen the effectiveness of our AML/CFT regime. He observed that the Bill’s purpose is twofold, as follows: it will assist Mauritius to support the third application for technical compliance rerating of the remaining five Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendations; and it will support the implementation of the FATF Action Plan. 

Moreover, he underlined that the Bill provides for amending 19 pieces of legislations, including: the Banking Act; the Civil Status Act; the Companies Act; the Financial Intelligence and Anti-Money Laundering Act; the Financial Reporting Act; the Gambling Regulatory Authority Act; the Prevention of Corruption Act; and the Good Governance and Integrity Reporting Act.

The Minister also reiterated Government’s determination to comply with the international standards to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism and proliferation by bringing fundamental changes to the AML/CFT legislative framework. He further stressed that, under the FATF Action Plan, Mauritius does not have any technical deficiencies that must be addressed and is focussing on the strengthening of the effectiveness of its AML/CFT Regime.

In addition, he recalled that in May 2019, Government enacted the Anti-Money Laundering and Combatting the Financing of Terrorism and Proliferation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act to set the legal foundation so as to enable the designated AML/CFT regulatory bodies to implement a risk based supervision framework for the designated non-financial businesses and professions. These regulatory bodies are, namely: the Attorney General’s Office; the Financial Intelligence Unit; the Mauritius Institute of Professional Accountants; the Gambling Regulatory Authority; and the Registrar of Companies.