Terrorism financing risk assessment update – Non-profit Organisations (NPOs)
Historically an area noted as being critically weak in terms of the effective assessment, with a low rating under the Immediate Outcomes (IO.9 and IO.10) ratings.
read more >>Judicial Matters Amendment Bill (2023)
In April 2024, the President enacted the Judicial Matters Amendment Bill (2023) into law. The bill aims to modernise and improve the functioning of judicial and related legal frameworks in SA through a series of targeted amendments across multiple laws, including compliance with a Constitutional Court judgment. As a result, the bill amends the principal…
read more >>Institutional framework for sanctions
South Africa has applied its institutional framework for sanctions in alignment with the FATF recommendations and has made substantial progress in addressing the strategic deficiencies that led to its grey listing in February 2023. COMPLETE: We stopped tracking this specific reform at end-June 2025 as it is complete and in effect.
read more >>Bank compliance review (per Zondo recommendation)
The Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC) has been actively involved in conducting a comprehensive review of the effectiveness of the current regulatory reporting regime under the FIC Act, focusing specifically on banking compliance with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing measures as recommended by the Zondo Commission. The bank compliance review is intended to ensure that banks…
read more >>National Anti-Corruption Charter
A National Anti-Corruption Charter as recommended by the Zondo Commission would establish shared principles, ethical standards and a code of conduct aimed at preventing corrupt practices.
read more >>New statutory offence to abuse public office
Responsibility to develop legislation to make it a statutory offence to abuse public office rests with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, which is evaluating recommendations on this issue from the South African Law Reform Commission recommendations and reviewing international best practice.
read more >>Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act (PRECCA) reform to strengthen obligation on private sector to prevent corruption
The Zondo Commission recommended that PRECCA be amended to introduce a provision criminalising the failure of persons or entities to prevent bribery. This recommendation has been implemented through the Judicial Matters Amendment Act (Act 15 of 2023), which commenced on 3 April 2024. The Act adds a new section (34A) to PRECCA, creating an offence…
read more >>Enhanced whistleblower protection
The Zondo Commission recommended several measures to improve whistleblower protection, including granting whistleblowers criminal and civil immunity in certain cases and establishing an awards system to incentivise disclosures. Government has been working on reforms, including a proposed Whistleblower Protection Amendment Bill.
read more >>Judicial full independence/judicial autonomy
Steps are under way to place the judiciary on the path to its full institutional independence. The Judiciary lacks institutional independence as it is still controlled by the Department of Justice and other executive agencies. A task team from the justice department has been given a deadline end of August 2025 to present a progress…
read more >>Improve risk-based categorisation and supervision
Government has been demonstrating a commitment to enhancing its risk assessment of Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professionals (DNFBPs) to combat money laundering and terrorist financing effectively. The government has adopted a proactive approach to combating financial crime by continuously improving its understanding of risks within DNFBP sectors and implementing measures to mitigate them effectively. COMPLETE:…
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