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Sierra Leone’s Minister of Finance, Hon. Sheku Ahmed Fantamadi Bangura, has raised serious concerns over the worsening security and financial crime threats facing West Africa, calling for urgent and united regional action to address the growing challenges.
The Minister made the remarks during the recent Plenary Session of the Inter-Governmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA) and the meeting of the GIABA Ministerial Committee held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
Addressing delegates and regional stakeholders, Hon. Bangura noted that countries within the ECOWAS sub-region are confronting increasingly complicated security issues that extend beyond national borders. He stressed that the evolving threats now facing West Africa require collective responses and stronger collaboration among member states.
He identified terrorism financing, cybercrime, illicit financial transactions, maritime insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea, and other transnational criminal activities as major risks threatening the region’s peace, economic stability, and democratic progress.
According to the Finance Minister, the impact of these crimes goes far beyond security concerns, warning that they also weaken investor confidence, disrupt development efforts, and undermine governance systems across the region.
Hon. Bangura further emphasized the importance of strengthening intelligence-sharing mechanisms among West African countries while improving financial monitoring systems and regulatory structures aimed at detecting and preventing money laundering and terrorism financing.
He also encouraged regional governments to modernize their security and surveillance systems, particularly within the maritime sector, and to invest in stronger digital protection measures to counter the increasing sophistication of cyber-related crimes.
Participants at the high-level gathering reportedly viewed Sierra Leone’s intervention as a significant contribution to ongoing regional discussions on protecting financial integrity and strengthening coordinated security responses within West Africa.
The GIABA Plenary and Ministerial Committee meeting in Abidjan brought together ministers, financial experts, and regional policymakers to deliberate on strategies for combating money laundering, disrupting terrorism financing networks, and enhancing cooperation among West African states in addressing emerging security threats.
