The Minister of State has expressed confidence in Guyana’s anti-money laundering legislation and its ability to detect financial crime threats and related activities.
Minister Dawn Hastings-Williams shared the sentiment during the Gaming Authorities Stakeholder Forum held yesterday at the Pegasus Hotel, to familiarise stakeholders with the AML/CFT Act in preparation for the Mutual Evaluation by the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF), a release from the Ministry of the Presidency stated.
There, she urged stakeholders to continue forging dialogue on the legislation with the view of ensuring positive action and results and asked them to adhere to the laws of the gaming industry.
She applauded the efforts of the Gaming Authority, noting that the forum is pursuant to the mandate set out by the Government with the passage of the AML/CFT Act. She further noted that the Government is pleased with the steps that the Authority is taking to ensure that the rule of law is enforced in the gaming industry.
It was reported that Hastings-Williams referenced President David Granger’s charge in his address at the opening ceremony of the 46th Plenary Meeting of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force in November 2017, and reiterated that the Caribbean today “is fighting a war against financial ‘privateers’ to preserve the integrity of its institutions”. On that note, she expressed confidence that Guyana’s robust legislation can detect financial crime threats and the activities related to those crimes and can successfully prosecute the perpetrators of those crimes, the release said.
The forum was the second of its kind to be held in Guyana and the first in a series to enlighten stakeholders on the preparation of the sector for the Fourth Round of Mutual Evaluation by the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) slated for the first quarter of 2022.
According to Chief Executive Officer of the Gaming Authority, Lloyd Moore, the session discussed the Gaming Authority’s role as mandated. ‘The Stakeholder Forum allows the stakeholders [to] broaden their understating of the roles, responsibilities and objects to ensure that Guyana is successful at the Mutual Evaluation,” he said.
The release noted that the Gaming Authority’s Director, Christine King and Chairman, Roysdale Forde, also attended the Forum.
