As of June 2020, Panama has been part of the European Commission’s list of high-risk third countries with regards to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT). This means the country is considered as “having strategic deficiencies in their AML/CFT regime, also based on the fact that these countries were identified in the FATF document ‘Improving Global AML/CFT Compliance: on-going process statement’.”

The training and activities conducted by the EU Global Facility on AML/CFT seek to rectify Panama’s strategic deficiencies in its national anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing framework. as defined under the Fourth and Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directives.

In March 2021, the EU Global Facility received a request for technical assistance on Beneficial Ownership (BO) and Law Enforcement Agencies (LEA) from Panama. A month later, a work programme was shared with the country, followed by the kick-off of activities in May. A set of e-training sessions and mentoring activities has been delivered over the next six months.

In October 2021, the EU GF team conducted a scoping mission to Panama to draft a plan of action for the future.

Between May 2021 and November 2021, 4 weekly e-training were delivered to Panama, reaching 45 participants.