The Ministry for Foreign and European Affairs, in collaboration with the National Coordinating Committee on Combatting Money Laundering and Funding of Terrorism, has today launched the ‘Malta Workshops’.
These are a series of five workshops providing a forum where officials from small international financial centers meet, with the participation of international experts in various fields; primarily the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing (AML/CFT); to discuss the challenges and vulnerabilities they face in their work to attract international business, as well as ways in which these risks can be mitigated.
The government of Malta’s initiative has aroused great interest, so much so that around two thousand people from sixty different countries are taking part and representing governments, relevant state agencies and institutions, national banking authorities and institutions, technical agencies involved in AML. / CFT and embassies, who are actively participating in the workshops.
The list of participants also includes officials from various international institutions, including MONEYVAL, the International Monetary Fund, the Council of Europe, the European Central Bank, the Eurasian Group and the UNODC.
Participants will explore ways to strengthen co-operation between them and how such co-operation can result in tangible achievements worldwide. In this context, the workshops will deal with a different aspect each day, together with distinguished international and global experts, who will also address questions and comments from participants.
The workshops will also focus on how small international financial centers can benefit from a global framework of co-operation and collaboration with other partners at national, regional and international level, with a view to finding common solutions to this common challenge.
In his opening address, Minister for Foreign and European Affairs Evarist Bartolo held that the challenge of corruption, money laundering and terrorist financing is a major challenge being faced by every country, and that such a global challenge can only be addressed at a global level. He stressed that, while we want to strengthen the institutions, the whole country must be pulling the same rope against said crimes.
In this context, Minister Bartolo added that the institutions are as effective as the honesty and integrity of the people inside them and, as such, everyone; including political parties, business associations, unions, the media, the church, the education system and civil society; must do their part so that, beyond clichés, the values of honesty and integrity are nurtured so that the wealth generated is honest and clean.
