Deputy Minister of Finance, Thomas Nyarko Ampem, has warned that illicit financial flows and money laundering are trapping African economies in what he terms as a “doom loop”.

He describes the situation as a vicious cycle of weak regulation, capital flight and dwindling fiscal capacity that continues to undermine sustainable growth.

Mr. Ampem said the scale of illicit financial activities is eroding Africa’s post-pandemic recovery and diverting critical resources from development priorities.

“The spike in insecurity and money laundering has coincided with the recovery of our economies from recent global economic shocks and an increasing youthful population. This has resulted in a doom loop where economic growth is undermined due to disruptions in economic activities, loss of significant national revenue due to illicit flows and smuggling, poor delivery of critical public services, increasing youth discontent which fuels illegal migration as well as creating a new generation of extremist recruits.”

The Minister was speaking at the opening of a three-day Joint Experts’ Meeting in Accra, organised by the Inter-Governmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA) in collaboration with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the Government of Ghana.

“We must not only urgently break this doom loop but must also collectively reverse it. This must be our ambition because the cost of inaction will be inestimable.”

He suggested that deeper regional cooperation remains crucial in addressing the growing threat, calling for harmonised oversight frameworks, robust financial intelligence systems and stronger enforcement mechanisms to stem the tide of cross-border financial crimes.

“We must strengthen our institutions, close the regulatory gaps, and foster real-time intelligence sharing among countries in the region. This is the only way we can collectively protect our economies and ensure financial integrity”, he said.

The meeting brought together policymakers, regulators, and financial experts from across West Africa to chart a coordinated regional response aimed at safeguarding financial systems, promoting transparency and building resilient, inclusive economies.