ISLAMABAD: The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on Friday, while acknowledging the completion of Pakistan’s both Action Plans (2018 and 2021), authorized an on-site visit to the country as a final step to exit from its grey list. The task force reviewed Pakistan’s progress on FATF Action Plans in its plenary meetings held in Berlin on June 13-17, a press release issued here by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Meanwhile, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar said that Pakistan’s process of exiting the FATF’s grey list would come to an end in October. “Now our process of exiting the grey list as per the FATF procedure starts, according to which a technical evaluation team will be sent to Pakistan,” she said in a video message after the task force said the country had met all 34 items on two separate action plans.
“It is our full effort that this team completes its work before October’s plenary cycle and we have told them that we will ensure their comfort and ease,” Khar said.
According to the Foreign Office, the FATF members while participating in the discussion on Pakistan’s progress, congratulated the country for completing both Action Plans covering 34 items, and especially on the early completion of the 2021 Action Plan in a record timeframe.
Pakistan continued its relentless efforts towards successful completion of the Action Plans despite many challenges, including the COVID 19 pandemic. It covered a lot of ground in the Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) domain during implementation of the Action Plans. The engagement with FATF led to the development of a strong AML/CFT framework in Pakistan and resulted in improving the country’s systems to cope with future challenges. The Pakistani delegation, which attended FATF’s plenary meetings in Berlin, was led by Ms Hina Rabbani Khar, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs / Chairperson National FATF Coordination Committee.
Hina Rabbani Khar, in a Twitter post, congratulated Pakistan by saying that FATF had declared both Action Plans complete. The international community had unanimously acknowledged the country’s efforts, she added.
“Our success is the result of 4 years of challenging journey. Pakistan reaffirms resolve to continue the momentum and give our economy a boost,” Ms Khar added.
