CHAIRMAN’S WORK PROGRAMME 2009 – 2010

It is indeed an honour and privilege for the Government and people of the Netherlands Antilles to direct the efforts of the Caribbean Basin Region in the fight against Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) as Chair of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) at the same time as the Netherlands holds the Presidency of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). This unique confluence of circumstances places the Caribbean Basin Region in an unprecedented position to work even closer with our longstanding partners over the next year, at a time when effects of the economic and financial crisis present enormous challenges for the advancement of the global ML/FT agenda.  

 

As a founder Member of the CFATF which was launched in Aruba in 1990, the Netherlands Antilles has always played a robustly active and supportive role in all organs of this organization, in terms of advancing the regional AML/CFT agenda and improving dialogue and co-operation amongst our members as well as with the international community.

The Netherlands Antilles is cognizant that the ever changing challenges in the money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism arena require timely and effective modifications in the CFATF’s policies, practices and programmes so as to confront and defeat trans-national criminal organizations and those who finance terrorism.  Consequently as CFATF Chair for the next year, we will intensify our ongoing efforts to encourage the adoption of measures which are designed to achieve greater operational efficiency in the pursuit of the organisation’s goals.

The Secretariat will be mandated to continue the development of the Operations Manual which will constitute a clear signpost as to the manner in which all aspects of CFATF’s operations should be conducted.

MEMBERSHIP PARTICIPATION

The CFATF’s constitutive document the Memorandum of Understanding and the more recent commitments and undertakings enshrined in the St. Kitts and Nevis Communique should be the guiding principles for all aspects of the CFATF’s operations. The Netherlands Antilles will encourage and it is expected that the high level of Ministerial attendance as was evident in November 2008 should be maintained and indeed surpassed so that the authority and force of the decision making process within the CFATF cannot be challenged.

In addition to the above, the keen interest in the organisation’s business as demonstrated by the upward trajectory of the discussions at Plenary Meetings, Financial Intelligence Units Forum will constitute an authoritative statement of the political will and commitment of the Caribbean Basin Region to the protect the international financial system from criminal elements.

The decision by Ministers to accept full responsibility for the financial affairs of the organisation dictates that Members should be prompt with the payment of their annual contributions. As such the Netherlands Antilles will encourage that the submission of annual contributions should be completed at the earliest possible opportunity in the financial year.

In order to accommodate the budgetary cycles for Members, April 30^th of each year should be the target date. The co-operation of Members in this regard will facilitate the ability of the Secretariat to effectively undertake the day to day operations of organization and to manage the available financial resources in such a fashion as to serve the CFATF’s best interests.

THE CFATF AS A BI-LINGUAL, COSMOPOLITAN ORGANISATION

The CFATF has a rich, diverse, multi-cultural heritage which should be the source of immense pride for all Members and the focal point for cohesion rather than discord. Increased dialogue by all CFATF Members with the Chair and the Secretariat on a continuous basis and outside the formal settings of Plenary and Ministerial meetings should go far to ensure the resolution of areas of concern without acrimony and tension.    

The involvement of the Spanish speaking Members in every facet of CFATF affairs since the inception of the organization has been deep as it has been constant. Lest we forget to our peril, a recollection of the factual situation should provide a sense of accomplishment as it is instructive on the need for even greater cohesiveness and the deployment of much greater efforts by all Members to avoid polarization in the organisation.

The Kingston Declaration dated November 5-6 1992 was the outcome of the resolve of Ministers and Representatives of Caribbean and Latin American Governments to make real progress against the problems of drug trafficking and money laundering. By October 1996 the CFATF membership included Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Panama and Venezuela. Observers included Colombia and Mexico.

The original Memorandum of Understanding was signed in San Jose, Costa Rica on October 10^th 1996 by Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Panama and Nicaragua. Venezuela signed on October 8^th 1997. In March 2000, Panama had agreed to become part of the Contact Group to secure Guatemala’s membership and the Work Programme of Aruba for 2000-2001 included an Outreach Programme to Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Guyana with a view to full membership. Colombia was part of a CFATF Ad hoc Working Group on membership issues. Guatemala and Honduras signed the Memorandum of Understanding on October 17^th 2002 and El Salvador signed on October 23^rd 2003.

During October 1996 and October 1997 The Honourable Juan Diego Castro Fernandez, Minister of Justice, Costa Rica held the CFATF Chair and it was in San Jose, Costa Rica that the first version of the CFATF Mutual Evaluation Procedures was adopted. In 2001 the CFATF Chair was held by Dominican Republic, in 2004 by the Republic of Panama, in 2006 by Guatemala and in 2007 by Costa Rica.  

On its formation in October 1997 until 2000 the Steering Group consisted of Cayman Islands, Netherlands Antilles and Trinidad and Tobago with Netherlands representing the COSUNs. In 2000 Panama was a member of the Steering Group, in 2001 Dominican Republic and

Panama were members and in 2002 the Steering group included Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Spain being the COSUN representative.

In 2003 Panama, Costa Rica and Guatemala participated in the Steering Group and Panama, El Salvador and Venezuela did so in 2004. In 2005 Guatemala, and Dominican Republic were members and in 2006 Guatemala and Spain were on the Steering Group whilst for 2007 it was Costa Rica, Guatemala and Honduras. For 2008 Costa Rica, Guatemala and Mexico were members and for 2009 El Salvador and Guatemala are on the Steering Group.  

In October 2001 Antonio Hyman Bouchereau, Panama, was presented as Deputy Director, in October 2004 Russell Ursula, Netherlands Antilles, (Spanish speaker) and in November 2008 Ernesto Lopez, Colombia, was presented as Deputy Director.

In March 1996 an Ad hoc Working Group comprising Trinidad and Tobago, Aruba, Cayman Islands, Colombia, Costa Rica, Netherlands Antilles and St. Lucia was formed to set out the objectives of the CFATF, the status of Members and other organisations, funding and the role of the Secretariat. 

In February 1997 a CFATF Experts Working Group comprising Aruba, Costa Rica, Cayman Islands, Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago and the Netherlands Antilles was formed to analyse the results of the first CFATF Typology Exercise which was to be held a few months later in The Bahamas and to formulate a proposal to the Council of Ministers regarding the revised FATF Recommendations.

In March 2002 the Black Market Peso Exchange System Multilateral Working Group consisting of Aruba, Colombia, Panama, United States of America and Venezuela signed a Statement in Washington D.C. which elaborated on the CFATF Money Laundering Guidelines for CFATF Members Governments, Free Trade Zone Authorities and Merchants which was adopted by the CFATF in October 2001.   

In June 2002 a Working Group to Review the Memorandum of Understanding was formed comprising Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominican Republic, Panama, The Bahamas and Venezuela. In October 2006 the revised MOU was endorsed by Ministers.

In May 2008 the Typologies Publication Working Group was formed comprising of Panama (Chair), Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica and St. Kitts and Nevis.

In November 2008 the Strategic Plan Working Group was formed with a membership comprising Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bermuda, Costa Rica, Guyana, Guatemala, Mexico, Netherlands, Spain, St. Kitts and Nevis, The Bahamas and the United States of America.

Our cosmopolitan make up is testimony to long standing bonds of friendship and partnership between many countries of varied backgrounds which have never been nor should ever be broken. 

Over the coming year the Netherlands Antilles will continue the historic and ongoing drive to strengthen and revitalize the CFATF, where the Spanish, French, Dutch and English speaking regions which constitute this Caribbean Basin Region FATF Style Regional Organisation (FSRB), will all continue to feel at home.

In this regard the Netherlands Antilles will work with the Steering Group and the Secretariat in devising a Plan of Action which will see the Staff at the Secretariat undergo relevant training in order to become bi-lingual in Spanish in a reasonable period of time and to become familiar with the legal and financial systems and ways of working of the Spanish speaking Members. The long term goal is the ability of all Members to communicate with the Secretariat without any barriers.

The Netherlands Antilles will work assiduously through a dedicated outreach programme to ensure that all Members feel confident that their needs are being met and that their interests are given due regard on an equal basis by both the Chair and the Secretariat so that no country will ever consider leaving our CFATF for another FSRB. 

THE STEERING GROUP

The Steering Group will continue in its traditional advisory capacity, meeting and advising the Chair, consulting with the Members on internal CFATF policy, advising the Secretariat with regard to actions it should take to resolve matters which require immediate decisions and meeting on the margins of each Plenary Meeting. However over the next year where circumstances require, the Netherlands Antilles proposes to hold meetings of the Steering Group outside the traditional setting of the margins of Plenary and Ministerial meetings, either face to face or through electronic means. 

THE SECRETARIAT

Ministers continue to recognize the invaluable role of the Secretariat in relation to the ongoing progress and success of the CFATF and the professional and responsible manner in which all aspects our business are being undertaken.

The advocacy role and guidance of the Secretariat to Members during 2000-2006 and their eventual removal from the FATF NCCT process allows all of us to draw upon valuable resources and experiences for the current FATF ICRG exercise. A robust implementation of the Follow Up process, in keeping with the decision of Ministers along with the ongoing character of the FATF International Cooperation Review Group initiative require enhanced involvement and responsibilities for the Secretariat’s Mutual Evaluation Team.

In tandem with the increased volume of work, is the need for enhanced and timely analysis and feed back to the Secretariat from members so as to ensure efficacy in the fulfilment of its monitoring and representational duties.

A fully empowered and effective CFATF is one of the principal goals of the Netherlands Antilles. Long term success in the growth and development of the organisation and our ability to advance its work depends on a fully staffed Secretariat, using the latest information technology systems, backed with timely responses to all issues and assured of the moral support and protection of all Members. Over the next year and beyond we will be calling upon all Members to support in equal measure this endeavour.  

The ability of the Secretariat to undertake this Work Programme as well as the overall business of the organisation pivots on the fullest co-operation of all Members in this important area.

THE MUTUAL EVALUATION PROGRAMME

The CFATF Mutual Evaluation Programme and the Follow- up process as determined by Ministers are critical to the protection of our economies against criminal activity and the reputation of the Caribbean Basin Region as a strong partner with the international community on AML/CFT issues. An important facet of effective implementation of the international AML/CFT standards is that it lowers the risk that any member country and eventually the region as a whole poses to the international financial system which in turn is facilitative of attracting and maintaining inward investment and economic development.   

As we come towards the close of the Third Round of Evaluations we can state with certainty that some of our Members possess AML/CFT systems which offer sterling examples to the international community and is indicative of the high standards that CFATF Examiners can and must consistently attain in terms of quality of all CFATF Mutual Evaluation Reports.

Members must commit themselves to sustain this level of performance. However this can only be attained in the first instance through a detailed and careful completion of the Mutual Evaluation Questionnaire and thereafter through full adherence to each and every step of the agreed Mutual Evaluation Procedures in cooperation with the Secretariat.

The training of all new Mutual Evaluation Examiners in conjunction with all our traditional donor and support partners will continue and the task at hand will also include ensuring that Examiners who have already been trained are kept fully abreast of developments with the Methodology and are equally fully involved in all aspects of the Mutual Evaluation Programme.

During our term as Chair the Fourth Round of Evaluations will be launched around June 2010 with assessments that are focused on rectifying deficiencies identified in the Third Round Mutual Evaluation Reports, the Key and Core FATF Recommendations and any other deficiencies which are discovered through the FATF ICRG initiative in keeping with the particular risk profile of the individual jurisdiction. 

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND TRAINING

The co-ordination and delivery of technical assistance and training initiatives across the membership as in previous years will continue in close collaboration with our long standing friends and supporters.

Work with the private sector which to date has been successful, will also be an area of focus for the 2009-2010 period, with particular reference to educative outreach to the Designated Non Financial Businesses and Professions in some jurisdictions and the training of Judges, Magistrates and Prosecutors on a regional basis .

Instrumental to our successes on this front will be the continued and welcomed support of the Co-operating and Supporting Nations, FATF Secretariat, GAFISUD, IMF, World Bank, Commonwealth Secretariat, First Initiative and the Inter American Development Bank.

The CFATF will continue to work with the EGMONT Group in order to provide requisite guidance and support to relevant CFATF Members to successfully pursue membership.  

Our Technical Assistance and Training Programme will draw on the experiences and successes of other organizations and we will seek to reduce the advent of duplication of effort and the waste of scarce and limited resources through Needs and Availability of Resources Analyses and on-going consultation through the CFATF Donors Forum.

AML / CFT TYPOLOGIES

Since February 1996 the CFATF has been conducting a number of Typology Exercises which allow for the sharing of information collated by various bodies involved in the fight against money laundering and the combating of terrorism with the aim of increasing awareness of the attendant risks to the Caribbean Basin Region.

One of the first and important events of the Netherlands Antilles’ period as Chair will be the Joint CFATF/FATF Typology Exercise which will be held in the Cayman Islands during November 18-20, 2009.

We would like to encourage all CFATF Members to show their support through a high level of attendance, through the provision of AML/CFT Typologies from their respective jurisdictions and by their active participation during the actual exercise.

Members are also encouraged to submit Typologies to the Secretariat on a continuous basis so that new editions of the CFATF Typologies Publication could be published and disseminated to the all of our members. This publication should be useful for the private sector players with whom we must continue to engage.  The CFATF’s Typologies Working Group should sustain its successes in this area.

FINANCIAL INTELLIGENCE UNIT

The Heads of Financial Intelligence Units Forum is a particularly successful regional initiative which continues to play a significant role in encouraging intra-regional and international co-operation on judicial, regulatory and law enforcement issues.

The work of the Forum will continue during the Netherlands Antilles’ period as Chair with specific reference to the additional remit to discern an accurate picture of the actual risks to the Caribbean Basin Region through the compilation of AML / CFT methods and trends by transnational criminal organizations.

WORKING GROUPS

In this our seventeenth operational year, AML/CFT defences in the Caribbean Basin Region are much stronger than the state of affairs that existed in early years of the organization.

Our goal is that we will continue to strengthen our defensive mechanisms, which requires that we be fully engaged with the international community so as to ensure that the best interests of our member countries are articulated and taken into account.

Using the successful example of the Strategic Plan Working Group which will complete its proposals for the future growth and development of the CFATF the Netherlands Antilles will propose the creation of a Working Group with a remit to prepare for and guide the progress of the Fourth Round of Mutual Evaluations.

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

The partnership that the CFATF enjoys with the global AML/CFT assessment community is of particular importance to the ability of the region to play an active role in the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism. During the coming year all efforts will be made to further deepen the dialogue and strengthen the existing bonds of friendship and support with the Group of Cooperating and Supporting Nations, the FATF, FSRBs, the World Bank and IMF as well as all our other Observer Organisations.

FINANCIAL ACTION TASK FORCE

At this particularly historic stage when the Netherlands Antilles holds the CFATF Chair whilst the Netherlands continues it’s Presidency of the FATF we will aim to fortify even further the strong bonds of friendship, collaboration and support which continue between the both organizations.

During our term as Chair the Netherlands Antilles will seek to draw upon our ongoing experiences and our unique position as a member of both the FATF and the CFATF to benefit the overall work of this important regional organization in a constructive and positive fashion.

Through its Associate Membership Status with the FATF, Members of the CFATF have unlimited access to FATF Working Groups and five (5) CFATF Members are entitled to participate at each FATF Plenary Meeting, in addition to a representative from the CFATF Secretariat and the Chair. Accordingly we will urge more CFATF members to be active in the FATF Working Groups and Plenary meetings, using the opportunities that are presented.

Close cooperation with the FATF particularly as the FATF ICRG initiative continues to develop will serve the best interests of all CFATF Members as they strive to strengthen their domestic anti money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism regimes. 

Equally the close, longstanding and collaborative relationship between the CFATF and the Group of Co-operating and Supporting Nations (COSUN’s) all of whom are FATF Members, which have played a significant role in CFATF’s successes thus far must be strengthened given the ever increasing complexity of the issues which require the organisation’s constant attention.

As part of the global AML/CFT network that has been encouraged by the FATF, the Netherlands Antilles will continue our co-operation with the other FSRBs which also attend FATF Meetings as well as other FATF Observer Organisations such as the IMF, World Bank, EGMONT and the United Nations.

HIGHER ORGANISATIONAL PROFILE

It is of critical importance that the work of the CFATF should be given greater public prominence both within domestic public sector agencies tasked with AML/CFT activities, as well as throughout the private sector, particularly, in light of the new gatekeepers, which have been brought within the AML/CFT network as a consequence of the Revised FATF 40 Recommendations. In this regard, efforts by the Chair, Deputy Chair and the Secretariat as well as the effective use of our new Website will become valuable and effective tools.

We commend this Work Programme for your support.

CFATF SECRETARIAT

NOVEMBER 12^th 2009