INTER-GOVERNMENTAL ACTION GROUP AGAINST MONEY LAUNDERING IN WEST AFRICA GIABA REPORT CORRUPTION - MONEY LAUNDERING NEXUS: AN ANALYSIS OF RISKS AND CONTROL MEASURES IN WEST AFRICA May 2010 Disclaimer The designation employed and views expressed in this report are those of the researchers and do not necessarily represent the views of GIABA. 1 © 2010 GIABA. All rights reserved. No reproduction or translation of this publication may be made without prior written permission. Requests for permission to further disseminate, reproduce or translate all or part of this publication should be obtained from GIABA, Complexe Sicap Point E Av Chiekh A. Diop, X Canal IV 1er Etage Immeuble A, BP 32400, Ponty Dakar (Senegal). Tel: +221 33 859 18 18; Fax: +221 33 824 17 45 E-mail: [email protected] ; Website: www.giaba.org 2 Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..................................................................................................................................... 1 FOREWORD ........................................................................................................................................................... 2 LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................................................... 3 LIST OF APPENDICES .......................................................................................................................................... 5 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...................................................................................................................................... 6 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................... 13 CHAPTER TWO: BACKGROUND LITERATURE ............................................................................................ 19 CHAPTER THREE: CORRUPTION TECHNIQUES AND TRENDS. ............................................................... 33 CHAPTER FOUR: CORRUPTION AS IMPEDIMENT TO IMPLEMENTATION OF STANDARDS BY AML INSTITUTIONS ........................................................................................................................................... 38 CHAPTER FIVE: EXISTENCE AND ADEQUACY OF MLA AGREEMENTS FOR THE PURSUIT OF PROCEEDS OF CORRUPTION ........................................................................................................................... 47 CHAPTER SIX: IDENTIFICATION/ CASE STUDIES OF POLITICALLY-EXPOSED PERSONS AND VULNERABLE INDIVIDUALS .......................................................................................................................... 52 CHAPTER SEVEN: RECOMMENDATIONS. .................................................................................................... 58 REFERENCES ....................................................................................................................................................... 63 APPENDIX IA ........................................................................................................................................................ 65 APPENDIX IB ........................................................................................................................................................ 74 APPENDIX IC ........................................................................................................................................................ 77 APPENDIX ID ........................................................................................................................................................ 81 APPENDIX IE ........................................................................................................................................................ 82 APPENDIX IF ........................................................................................................................................................ 84 APPENDIX IG ........................................................................................................................................................ 86 APPENDIX II ........................................................................................................................................................ 88 APPENDIX III ....................................................................................................................................................... 91 APPENDIX IV: .................................................................................................................................................... 103 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This report is the outcome of a research project initiated and executed by the GIABA Secretariat over two years. The research project would not have been possible without the support and assistance of various individuals and organizations too numerous to mention all. However, GIABA acknowledges special contributions of the research team that carried out this research on behalf of GIABA, namely: 1. Professor Femi ODEKUNLE (Nigeria - Project Lead Consultant) 2. Mr. Jean-Baptiste ELIAS (Benin) 3. Mr. Jean-Baptiste DIAI (Cote d’Ivoire) 4. Dr. Kwesi ANING (Ghana) 5. Mr. Rui Correia LANDIM (Guinea Bissau) 6. Mr. Jasper CUMMEH III (Liberia) 7. Professor Abdul-Ganiyu GARBA (Nigeria) 8. Dr. (Mrs) Shade OKESHOLA (Nigeria) 9. Mr. Rigobert KUOADIO (Senegal) 10. Mr. Osman GBLA (Sierra Leone). Acknowledgement is also extended to the GIABA National Correspondents in those countries, as well as their national authorities without whose support and cooperation the study would not have been a success. All the other sources from where additional materials were obtained and support provided to the research team, whether directly or directly are hereby acknowledged. The staff of the GIABA Secretariat who participated in the project also deserve a special commendation – they are: 1. Ms. Stella ATTAKPAH 2. Mr. Muazu UMARU 3. Mr. Amath SOUMARE 4. Mr. Devante ALIBO 5. Mr. Madicke NIANG. Finally, we also acknowledge the contributions of various individuals and organizations to the processes that led to the completion of this project and publication of this report, including experts who discussed the report during our plenary meetings and the GIABA Ministerial Committee that approved the report for publication. FOREWORD Conceptually, corruption (along with corrupt institutions and personnel) is a “collaborator” in money laundering and, in practice, it represents a major opposition to anti-money laundering system and measures as the latter can hardly thrive in the absence of the former. The problem is particularly dire in the African region where, for many countries, good governance, integrity, and transparency are uncommon attributes in the conduct of public affairs – which explains why most African countries have consistently been rated poorly on the corruption index of Transparency International (TI). The costs and consequences of the problem are hardly quantifiable, yet, the costs and consequences entailed for Africa in particular, in terms of damage to public and corporate life can, generally speaking, be summed up as follows: enormous loss of government revenue; the undermining of national development efforts and economic potentials; erosion of efficiency, effectiveness and productivity of public services; the tainting of national images and the collaterality of this for foreign investments; the triggering of failures of states as occurred in Liberia or Sierra Leone during the war; and, probably, the financing of armed conflicts and terrorist activities. In appreciation of the enormity of these twin-problems, their symbiotic relationship, and the cost to development, stability and progress, several global, regional and national legislative and enforcement initiatives have emerged from the 1980s to combat corruption and money laundering e.g. the various U.N. legal instruments; the Transparency International (TI); the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and its network of Regional Style Bodies (FSRBs); the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI); the African Union’s Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption; the Economic Community of West African States Protocol on the Fight against corruption; the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Protocol against Corruption; etc. That is, there has been no shortage of anti-corruption/money laundering instruments, monitoring/enforcement agencies. Despite the awareness of the problem, the appreciation of the damaging costs, and the well- intentioned prevention/control initiatives, the problem does not seem to be abating, occasional “flashes in the pan” notwithstanding. Among factors responsible for this situation is the dearth of accurate, or at least near-accurate, data on the various dimensions of the problem especially in the West African region. On this problem, even the “digitalized” world only struggles to obtain estimates, talk less of a region that is still virtually “analogue”, if not manual, in its operations. The mutual evaluation reports of GIABA member States revealed that corruption constitutes a main predicate offence for money laundering and that counter measures are encumbranced by the prevalence of corruption. It was in recognition of this that GIABA commissioned a comprehensive study to among others: (i) Determine, as accurately as possible, the volume, prevalence, types, dominant- character, cost and trend of corruption and money laundering