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The Minister for the Interior, Mr Ambrose Dery, has called for the empowerment of the youth in the country to lead the fight against Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (AML/TF).
He said the youth should acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to prevent them from falling victims and becoming perpetrators of crimes.
“The role of the young people in the prevention and fight against AML/TF in the country cannot be downplayed,” he added.
Mr Dery stated this in a speech read on his behalf at the 13th edition of a forum on ML/FT for youth in Ghana in Accra yesterday.
It was organised by the Inter-Governmental Action Group Against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA), and aimed at mobilising the youth against organised crime, including ML/FT.
It also sought to provide an opportunity for the youth to embark on advocacy by helping to disseminate Anti-Money Laundering/Counter Terrorism Financing messages to peers and political decision makers.
The programme was on the theme “The role of young people in the prevention of and the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing”.
The participants were from universities, institutions, and youth groups, among others.
Mr Dery said the youth should be encouraged to lead in the fight against money laundering by being conscious of unsolicited offers.
He commended GIABA for the initiative and assured them of Ghana’s support to help them achieve their goals.
The Director General of GIABA, Justice Kimelabalou ABA, in a speech read on his behalf, said money laundering and terrorist financing undermined sustainable development by eroding social and human capital, threatening social and political stability, causing artificial rise in cost of business and driving away investment.
He said the menace of transnational organised crime, particularly money laundering and terrorist financing, posed serious threats to peace, security and sustainable development in any nation.
“As leaders of tomorrow, improving the capacities and empowering the youth towards leadership positions require concerted efforts both at national and individual levels,” he added.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Financial IntelligenceCentre (FIC),Mr Kwaku Dua, in his remarks, stated that the FIC conducted a money laundering typology study in 2019 and observed that the youth were active players in various schemes selected for study” he said.
He mentioned that the role of the young people in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing was crucial, as the country had experienced the recruitment of some students as foreign terrorist fighters.
The Chief Director of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Alhaji Mohammed Sani Adams, mentioned ignorance, adventure, culture and cohesion as some of the reasons the youth engaged in crimes.
He said the 35 per cent of the population was the youth and if not managed well could be a threat to national security.
BY ANITA NYARKO-YIRENKYI
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