Namibia working around the clock to address greylisting

Namibia was officially greylisted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on 23 February, a move signalling heightened scrutiny over the country’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing measures.

This designation highlights significant deficiencies in Namibia's compliance with international standards, potentially jeopardising foreign direct investment and trade, Financial Intelligence Centre director Bryan Eiseb explained.

Despite addressing 59 out of 72 recommended actions, the country faces ongoing challenges that could impact its economic stability and international reputation.

As Namibia navigates this critical period, government is committed to implementing necessary reforms to restore confidence in its financial system and safeguard its economic future, he said.

Extent of impact

Eiseb explained that greylisting typically impacts an economy through various channels, including gross domestic product (GDP), government funding costs, exchange rates, cross-border transactions and capital markets.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) noted that countries greylisted by FATF generally experience significant reductions in capital inflows, averaging a net loss of 7.7% relative to GDP, Eiseb said.

“Namibia’s strong macroeconomic fundamentals suggest that the country may be well placed to withstand the short-term impact of greylisting. Notwithstanding, we do acknowledge that the period is certainly too short to thoroughly examine the full extent of the impact on some key indicators, such as GDP, as the transmission therein takes time. However, given the prevailing robust economic landscape, these effects may be offset,” Eiseb noted.

“Despite the greylisting, investor perceptions of Namibia remain broadly positive. Given that Namibia's currency is pegged to the South African rand, the negative effects on the exchange rate associated with the greylisting appear minimal,” he added.

Increased diligence

The greylisting would, however, result in increased due diligence requirements for Namibia.

“In terms of the financial system impact, greylisting may lead to increased due diligence requirements, higher compliance costs, and longer cross-border transaction times. Financial institutions have reported that no immediate impact has been experienced,” Eiseb said.

However, measures are being put in place in preparation for potential medium- and long-term impacts of the greylisting. Proactive action and engagements with correspondent banks are currently underway to enhance further compliance and additional checks and supplementary due diligence.

Patience warranted

Eiseb called on the general public to exercise patience amid an increased turnaround time regarding compliance checks that need to be conducted.

“Namibians and other stakeholders are urged to be mindful of the increased turnaround times and compliance checks that may be enhanced and to factor that in in their planning to avoid any inconvenience,” Eiseb said.

Eiseb also pointed out that Namibia had submitted a voluntary report to the FATF ahead of October.

“Given the progress made since greylisting, Namibia has decided to voluntarily submit an earlier report to the FATF for its meeting in October 2024. Reporting earlier than required can expedite exiting the greylist if effective progress is noted. Namibia’s report in this regard was submitted on 19 July 2024,” he said.