CT INFLOW explores risks of terrorism financing in the non-profit sector

Between 10-14 October, the CT INFLOW project organised a five-day regional workshop in Tunis on the implementation of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendation 8 for the representatives of Law Enforcement Agencies and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) from the Middle East and North Africa region. FATF is a global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog, and their recommendation requires that the laws and regulations that govern non-profit organisations be reviewed so that these organisations cannot be abused for the financing of terrorism.

Non-profit organizations (NPOs) are a vibrant and integral part of the contemporary global environment and play a significant role in combatting terrorism. While the vast majority of these entities work tirelessly to improve the lives of people around the world, a small number of organisations and individuals have taken advantage of the sector for contrary reasons: To support those who engage in terrorism.

To efficiently assess the risk at which these organisations operate, 60 participants from the MENA region, Turkey, Argentina and Moldova joined this event and shared good practices with each other, alongside with representatives from AFRIPOL and the African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism (CAERT).

“ The better a country understands the flow of the funds through the NPO sector, the more likely we will be able to identify, disrupt, and prevent terrorist financing. The exchange of information between different institutions and agencies on the national, regional and international level is crucial to fight the misuse of the NPO sector” – emphasised CEPOL expert Simon Goddard.

The workshop concluded that the abuse of NPOs to finance or materially support terrorism may seem to be a risk with low probability, yet the impact of these activities is particularly acute for both the victims of terrorism and those who should benefit from the good works of these organisations. This immediate impact is multiplied when one considers the loss of public confidence in the integrity of the NPO sector.

The activity was co-organised with EU Global Facility on Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism and the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism, with the active involvement of the Global NPO Coalition on FATF. A member of the EU Delegation in Tunis and a representative of the host country also supported the event.

About CT INFLOW

The Counter-Terrorism Information Exchange and Criminal Justice Responses project aims at contributing to prevent and disrupt terrorist networks and the activities of recruiters to terrorism, cutting off terrorist funding, and bringing terrorists to justice, while continuing to respect human rights and international law. Read more on the project page.