ESAAMLG Council of Ministers adopts the Mutual Evaluation Report for the
Republic of Zimbabwe

The ESAAMLG Council of Ministers approved and adopted the mutual evaluation report for the Republic of Zimbabwe in August 2007.  The mutual evaluation was conducted by the ESAAMLG.  Before its approval by the Council of Ministers, the report was considered and adopted by the ESAAMLG Task Force of Senior Officials in August 2007.

The major findings of the report include-

• Zimbabwe has set up the key fundamentals of an AML regime through various legislative and regulatory instruments.
• Zimbabwe has criminalised money laundering under the Serious Offences (Confiscation of Profits) Act enacted in 1990 and amended in 2001.  The Bank Use Promotion and Suppression of Money Laundering Act 2002 also criminalises money laundering and requires institutions designated under the Act to identify customers and maintain transaction records.
• Zimbabwe has also enacted legislation against terrorism.  The Foreign and International Terrorism Bill which criminalises the financing of terrorism is the process of being enacted.
• The legal and regulatory instruments provide for the criminalisation of money laundering and suspicious transaction reporting;
• The key components of the institutional framework for AML are in place.  The Financial Intelligence Inspectorate and Evaluation Unit located within the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe operates as a Financial Intelligence Unit.
• The Reserve Bank has been enforcing compliance by financial institutions with the AML requirements.

The report also identifies areas of deficiencies in the AML/CFT framework of Zimbabwe. It makes comprehensive recommendations on actions that Zimbabwe needs to take in the short and medium terms to strengthen its AML/CFT system to fully comply over time with international standards.

Click here to download a copy of the summary of the major findings of the report.

Click here to download the full text of the report.

ESAAMLG Secretariat
15 April 2008