Nepal to present progress report next week in APG annual meeting

Nepal will take part in the 15th annual meeting of Asia/Pacific Group (APG) on Money Laundering to present its progress report in fighting against the flow of dirty money next week.
Nepal, a member of Asia/Pacific Group, will present its progress report on the basis of last year's evaluation of the APG, said central bank deputy governor Mahaprasad Adhikari, who is leading the team to Brisbane, Australia.
The meeting on July 16-20 will witness an enhanced follow up of Nepal and mutual evaluation of some six countries.
From its original 13 founding members, APG now consists of 41 active members making it the largest Financial Action Task Force (FATF)-style regional body in the world.
In addition, 10 members — Australia, Canada, India, China, Hong Kong (China), Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Singapore and the United States — of the APG are also members of the FATF.
Last July, the 14th annual meeting of APG had approved Nepal’s mutual evaluation report in implementing international standards to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism.
Nepal was recommended a slew of reforms and the meeting next week will follow up on the reforms that Nepal made during the last one year.
Nepal’s team includes officials from the Law Ministry, Financial Information Unit under the central bank, Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority, newly formed AML Department, Nepal Police, besides central bank deputy governor. After a delay of two years, Nepal recently brought two key Anti-Money Laundering Acts through ordinance to escape from being blacklisted by FATF.
The APG is an international organisation — regionally focused — consisting of 40 members and a number of international and regional observers including the UN, IMF, FATF, Asian Development Bank and World Bank.
It is closely affiliated with the Financial Action Task Force, whose secretariat is located at the OECD headquarters in Paris. All APG members commit to effectively implement FATF’s international standards for anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism, referred to as the 40 plus nine recommendations. Part of the commitment includes implementing measures against terrorists listed by the UN in the UNSC 1267 Consolidated List.
Every year, APG members undergo mutual evaluation and prepare a Mutual Evaluation Report that presents a probing assessment of the levels of compliance with the international standards and recommends actions.
The APG was officially established as a regional organisation in 1997 at the fourth Asia/Pacific Money Laundering Symposium in Bangkok. It ensures that mechanisms are in place for international cooperation, given the international dimension to money laundering and terrorist financing.
Earlier in July 2010, the 13th annual meeting was held in Singapore. Nepal was evaluated in the APG’s first round of evaluations in 2005 and in the second round in 2010.
Nepal became a member of the APG in June 2002.