The Ministry of Community Development and Social Services, through the Department of the Registrar for Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), successfully hosted a four-day National Awareness and Stakeholder Engagement Programme on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendation 8.

The engagement was held under the theme: “Strengthening Risk-Based Oversight, Compliance, and Collaboration to Protect the Integrity of Zambia’s Non-Profit Organization Sector.”

Supported by SecFin Africa and facilitated by the Civic Advisory Hub, the programme brought together over 150 participants from government institutions, regulators, law enforcement agencies, financial institutions and Non-Profit Organizations to enhance understanding of Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) standards while promoting risk-based oversight, compliance and collaboration across the sector.

Participants discussed terrorist financing risks, governance, compliance, self-regulation and inter-agency collaboration, emphasizing that FATF Recommendation 8 is intended to protect the integrity of legitimate Non-Profit Organizations through targeted and proportionate measures rather than restrict their operations.

The programme also launched the NPOs Regulators Connect (NRC) – Zambia Chapter, a platform that will promote continuous dialogue, information sharing and cooperation between regulators and the NPO sector to strengthen transparency, accountability and compliance.

The engagement reaffirmed Zambia’s commitment to implementing international AML/CFT standards while safeguarding the vital role of Non-Profit Organizations in national development through strengthened partnerships among government, regulators, financial institutions and civil society.