Good afternoon. Claims that Mozambique is expected to be removed in a few months from the so-called “grey list” of countries with inadequate controls against money laundering (see below) need to be treated with caution. The country was placed on the list by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an international body to counter money laundering and terrorism financing, in October 2022.
Luís Cezerilo, deputy head of the Financial Information Office and the official in charge of overseeing efforts to get off the list, has previously suggested that the country was on the brink of leaving, but has been proved wrong. In June last year, he said that the FATF looked set to approve the request later that month; in January this year, he said it was likely to happen in the first quarter. Now we hear, from the FATF’s regional affiliate body in Southern Africa, that it might happen in October. We will have to wait and see.
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It is true that the government has created a number of regulations to tighten up how money is transferred and the information that people transferring it need to provide. But where it has been lacking (and this seems to explain why the previous targets for exiting the grey list have been missed) is in enforcing the rules. There is just not enough proof that anyone is facing justice for money laundering or terrorism financing.
