Cabinet has approved the country’s National Strategy on Anti-Money Laundering, Counter Financing of Terrorism and Counter Financing of Proliferation (AML/CFT/CPF), together with the National Risk Assessment.
Cabinet approved the documents during its meeting on Wednesday, said Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele.
He said the strategy was developed as a response to the risk assessment prepared by all the relevant security and finance agencies.
“The operationalisation of this strategy – which provides three high-level goals with 13 strategic objectives – will involve law-enforcement agencies, intelligence agencies, financial and non-financial institutions, and private-sector representatives, among others.
“The implementation of the strategy will ensure the country strengthens its financial systems to support economic growth interventions by reducing levels of finance-related crimes,” he said at a post-Cabinet media briefing on Thursday.
The strategy also responds to some of the 40 recommendations made after South Africa was assessed by the Financial Action Task Force, an intergovernmental policymaking body that strives to combat terrorist financing and money laundering globally.
The summarised two reports will be published on National Treasury’s website: www.treasury.gov.za.
State Litigation Strategy
Cabinet also approved the State Litigation Strategy for 2021 – 2026.
The strategy seeks to drive the transformation of the legal profession in a systematic manner.
“It guides on how the State will distribute legal work to legal practitioners; manage the costs of the litigation; guides the management of stakeholders; provides for the maximisation of the use of technology and systems.
“The strategy also addresses the development of human capacity management and development. It will be applicable to litigation services of the State from all spheres of government.”
Cabinet also approved the two additional policies to support the implementation of this strategy.
The Minister said the Briefing and Outsourcing of State Legal Work Policy will introduce an element of fairness and drive the transformational allocation of litigation services that cannot be performed internally.
“The Initiating, Defending and Opposing of Matters Policy will provide clarity on processes to be followed by client departments and the Office of the Solicitor-General.
“The two policies – together with the other policies that were approved by Cabinet in November 2021 and the Legal Sector Code – will support the implementation of this strategy. These documents will ensure a meaningful transformational intervention in the legal sector and also ensure the economies of scale in litigation matters that involve the State,” he said.
The State Litigation Contingent Liability Policy, which provides mechanisms to manage state litigation contingent liability, was also approved by Cabinet at the same meeting.
This policy, provides for the creation of a central database and the reporting mechanism on the following-up of the cases in this database.
“The policy provides for the mechanism to close dormant case files that were resulting in unreliable contingent liability figures in respect of accountability,” she said.
