Measures to prevent the misuse of non-profit organizations (NPOs) for terrorist financing purposes must be proportionate and must not jeopardize the daily work of civil society organizations.
This was concluded at a consultative meeting organized by the Center for the Development of Non-Governmental Organizations (CRNVO) in cooperation with the Financial Intelligence Unit of the Police Administration (FIU).
The meeting, as stated by CRNVO, brought together representatives of relevant institutions and the NGO sector with the aim of presenting activities carried out within the framework of developing a new NPO abuse risk assessment, and implementing Recommendation 8 of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), which relates to reducing the risk of abuse in the non-profit sector.
State Secretary at the Ministry of Regional Investment Development and Cooperation with NGOs, Mirsada Bošnjak, emphasized that open dialogue is necessary for finding balanced solutions, especially when it comes to issues that may affect the work of civil society.
Assistant Director of the Police Directorate for Financial Intelligence, Aleksandar Radović, spoke about the development of the new NPO Abuse Risk Assessment, which is conducted every three years.
As he stated, the goal of the assessment is to identify vulnerable segments and define measures that will contribute to protecting organizations from potential abuses.
The Executive Director of CRNVO, Zorana Marković, reminded that transparency and cooperation of the civil sector can significantly contribute to risk reduction.
She emphasized that control measures must not be deterrent, as they could undermine the functionality and sustainability of organizations.
The CRNVO said that it was noted at the meeting that Montenegro had previously intensified its activities in this field, in order to fulfill the recommendations from the fifth round of evaluation after avoiding being placed on the "FATF grey list" at the end of 2023.
As stated, the participants agreed that, although the non-profit sector is not among the risky sectors, it is necessary for NPOs to be protected from abuse for the purpose of financing terrorism.
"There remains a need to clearly define risk points and appropriate safeguards in accordance with a risk-based approach, and which do not disrupt or discourage legitimate non-profit activities," the statement said.
CRNVO said that at the meeting, the organizations expressed their willingness to actively participate, both in the process of developing the Risk Analysis, and in creating future measures aimed at protecting the sector.
Bonus video:
