From ELEKWACHI CHINEDUM, Abuja
Countering the financing of terrorism is one of the major tools in curbing or eliminating acts of terrorism, Permanent secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Martin Uhomoibhi has said.
Uhomoibhi who made this assertion in Abuja yesterday at a one day seminar on Countering the financing of terrorism said the denial of funds to terrorists makes the fight much easier.
“Terrorist group need money to operate. By denying them sources of funding, the prospect of winning the fight against terrorism becomes brighter” he noted.
Describing the seminar as apt and timely in view of the current security challenges faced by the country, the Permanent Secretary said the meeting will offer participants opportunity to exchange best practices and to formulate specific recommendations for each participating country in the domain of Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the financing of terrorism.
He reiterated federal government determination to continuously improve national response to terrorism and other related challenges in the country, revealing its collaboration with friendly countries and international organisations in strengthening capacity towards curbing terrorism.
He however expressed worry that the weak financial control, ineffective collaboration national law enforcement agencies and international corporation pose a great challenge to the region.
Earlier, the Ambassador of Switzerland to Nigeria, Dr. Hans-Rudolf Hodel said his country condemns terrorism in all its forms and rejects any notion that associates terrorism with race, ethnicity, nationality or religion.
While sympathizing with the many victims of terrorism and their families, Hans-Rudolf said the country is committed to assisting regional stakeholders in becoming aware of and to apply solid best practices and to strenghten regional capacity and cooperation in dealing with the financing of terrorist groups.
