(MENAFN- Gulf Times) The State of Qatar participated in the work of the 41st Plenary Meeting of the Middle East and North Africa Financial Action Task Force (MENAFATF), held in Manama in the Kingdom of Bahrain, with the participation of representatives from member states and regional and international organizations concerned with combating money laundering and terrorist financing.

Qatar's delegation was headed by HE Head of the Qatar Financial Information Unit and Member of the National Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Committee Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad bin Mubarak Al-Thani. The delegation also included Acting Secretary-General of the National Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Committee Mohammed Sareea Al Kaabi, as well as several other members of the committee.

The meeting was attended by senior officials from member and observer groups of countries and regional and international organizations specializing in combating money laundering, terrorist financing and arms proliferation. The meeting is an opportunity to strengthen and unify regional and international efforts to protect the region's economic systems from the risks of these crimes and reduce their impact on other areas.

The 41st MENAFATF meeting included a specialized workshop on exchanging experiences on the current mutual evaluation round and the mechanism for implementing the latest Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards, with the participation of Malaysia and Latvia. The two countries presented their practical experiences in preparing and implementing mutual evaluation rounds, as well as highlighting key lessons learned in applying the updated FATF standards. The workshop contributed to strengthening knowledge exchange among member states and supporting their efforts to enhance the effectiveness of their anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing systems.

MENAFATF honored the State of Qatar in recognition of its efforts and outstanding contribution to supporting the group's work over the past two years.

The award was received by the Acting Secretary-General of the National Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Committee Mohammed Sareea Al Kaabi.

This recognition reflects Qatar's active role in strengthening regional cooperation and developing capabilities in combating money laundering and terrorist financing. It also recognizes Qatar's tangible initiatives during the past period, most notably hosting the 9th edition of the MENAFATF Typologies and Capacity Building Workshop in 2024, which saw the participation of more than 250 specialists in the field of combating money laundering and terrorist financing.

In this context, it was decided that the State of Qatar would host two workshops as part of the group's training plan for 2026, continuing its active role in supporting capacity-building programs and strengthening partnerships between member states.

The State of Qatar affirmed its continued commitment to enhancing the readiness of its national system in line with Qatar National Vision 2030 and the international FATF standards, as well as early preparation for the upcoming evaluation process scheduled for 2028, by continuing to develop legislation, supervision and operational procedures to ensure the highest levels of effectiveness in combating money laundering and terrorist financing.

MENAFATF Qatar

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