The Non-Bank Financial Institutions Regulatory Authority Act 2006 established the Non-bank Financial Institutions Regulatory Authority (NBFIRA), after the endorsement (by Government) of the Carmichael Consulting Report, which recommended the setup of a single independent Non-Bank Financial Institutions (NBFI) regulator.

The Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime, commonly known as DCEC, is a key national partner of the Financial Intelligence Agency in the fight against corruption, economic crime, money laundering, and other serious financial offences. The DCEC plays an important role in preventing, investigating, and combating corruption and economic crime in Botswana.

The FIA’s partnership with the DCEC strengthens Botswana’s ability to identify financial activity linked to corruption, bribery, abuse of office, fraud, illicit enrichment, and other economic crimes. Since corrupt activity often involves the movement, concealment, or use of proceeds of crime, cooperation between the FIA and DCEC is important for tracing suspicious financial activity and supporting investigations.

Through this partnership, the FIA provides relevant financial intelligence to competent authorities, including the DCEC, where there are reasonable grounds to suspect financial crime. This intelligence may assist in identifying transaction patterns, beneficial ownership links, asset movements, and possible connections between individuals, companies, and illicit funds.

The DCEC contributes investigative and anti-corruption expertise that supports the wider national anti-money laundering, counter-terrorism financing, and counter-proliferation financing framework. Its work helps promote transparency, accountability, ethical conduct, and public confidence in national institutions.

This partnership also supports prevention. By working together, the FIA and DCEC contribute to awareness, risk identification, stakeholder engagement, and stronger controls against the misuse of Botswana’s financial system for corrupt or criminal purposes.

As a national partner, the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime is central to Botswana’s whole-of-government response to financial crime. The FIA’s collaboration with the DCEC reflects the importance of coordinated action in protecting public resources, strengthening integrity, and safeguarding the country’s financial system.

The Bank of Botswana is a key strategic partner of the Financial Intelligence Agency in safeguarding the integrity and stability of Botswana’s financial system. As the country’s central bank, the Bank of Botswana plays a critical role in promoting monetary stability, financial stability, sound banking practices, and effective oversight of important parts of the financial sector.

The FIA’s partnership with the Bank of Botswana supports Botswana’s national anti-money laundering, counter-terrorism financing, and counter-proliferation financing framework. The relationship is especially important because banks and other financial institutions are central to detecting and reporting suspicious financial activity. Through cooperation with the Bank of Botswana, the FIA is better positioned to understand financial sector risks, support compliance, and promote responsible reporting by regulated institutions.

The Bank of Botswana promotes financial stability through the regulation and supervision of banks and other financial institutions. It also has legislative oversight of the National Payments System, which supports the effective functioning of payment and settlement processes in Botswana. These responsibilities make the Bank an important partner in identifying vulnerabilities, strengthening financial sector controls, and supporting a secure financial environment.

Through this partnership, the FIA and the Bank of Botswana contribute to a coordinated national response to financial crime. Cooperation may include information sharing, stakeholder engagement, risk awareness, policy support, and collaboration on matters affecting financial institutions, payment systems, and the wider financial sector.

This relationship strengthens Botswana’s ability to detect, prevent, and disrupt money laundering, terrorism financing, proliferation financing, fraud, and other financial crimes. It also supports a risk-based approach to compliance, helping ensure that financial institutions understand their obligations and contribute meaningfully to the protection of the financial system.

As a national partner, the Bank of Botswana plays a central role in maintaining confidence in Botswana’s financial sector. The FIA’s collaboration with the Bank reflects the importance of strong institutional partnerships in promoting transparency, financial stability, regulatory effectiveness, and public trust.

The Directorate of Intelligence and Security, commonly known as DIS, is an important national security partner of the Financial Intelligence Agency. DIS is responsible for supporting the protection of Botswana’s national interests through intelligence gathering, security analysis, and coordination on matters that may affect national security.

The FIA’s partnership with DIS strengthens Botswana’s ability to identify and respond to financial crime risks that may have national security implications. Money laundering, terrorism financing, proliferation financing, organised crime, and other serious offences can involve complex financial networks. Cooperation between the FIA and DIS helps ensure that relevant financial intelligence is shared, assessed, and used to support lawful national security objectives.

Through this partnership, the FIA contributes financial intelligence that may assist in identifying suspicious transactions, financial patterns, and possible links between illicit finance and broader security threats. DIS provides an intelligence and security perspective that supports the country’s ability to detect threats early, protect national interests, and coordinate with other competent authorities.

This relationship supports Botswana’s wider anti-money laundering, counter-terrorism financing, and counter-proliferation financing framework. It encourages inter-agency cooperation, timely information sharing, and coordinated responses to risks that may affect both the financial system and national security.

As a national partner, DIS contributes to a whole-of-government approach to safeguarding Botswana. The FIA’s collaboration with DIS reflects the importance of strong partnerships between financial intelligence, law enforcement, and national security institutions in protecting the country and preserving confidence in the financial system.

The Botswana Defence Force, commonly known as BDF, is an important national security partner of the Financial Intelligence Agency. The BDF plays a central role in defending Botswana’s sovereignty, protecting national interests, and supporting national security objectives.

The FIA’s partnership with the Botswana Defence Force strengthens cooperation in areas where financial intelligence supports national security, counter-terrorism financing, counter-proliferation financing, and the protection of Botswana’s financial system. Financial crime can be linked to broader security threats, and cooperation between the FIA and national security institutions helps ensure that suspicious financial activity is identified, assessed, and shared with the relevant competent authorities.

Through this partnership, the FIA contributes intelligence that may assist in identifying financial patterns, suspicious transactions, and possible risks connected to terrorism financing, proliferation financing, organised crime, or other threats to national security. The Botswana Defence Force provides an important national security perspective that supports coordinated responses to risks that may affect the country’s stability and safety.

The relationship supports Botswana’s wider anti-money laundering, counter-terrorism financing, and counter-proliferation financing framework. It encourages information sharing, inter-agency coordination, and cooperation on matters where financial intelligence and national defence interests intersect.

As a national partner, the Botswana Defence Force contributes to a whole-of-government approach to protecting Botswana. The FIA’s collaboration with the BDF reflects the importance of strong institutional partnerships in safeguarding the country, supporting national security, and preserving the integrity of the financial system.

The Financial Action Task Force, commonly known as FATF, is an important international standard-setting partner for the Financial Intelligence Agency. FATF leads global action to tackle money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing, and sets the international standards that countries use to strengthen their AML/CFT/CPF frameworks.

The FIA’s relationship with FATF supports Botswana’s commitment to maintaining a financial intelligence system that is aligned with international standards. FATF standards guide how countries identify financial crime risks, supervise reporting entities, promote transparency, strengthen cooperation, and ensure that competent authorities can detect, investigate, and disrupt illicit financial activity.

Through FATF’s global framework, Botswana benefits from a common set of expectations for combating financial crime. The FATF Recommendations provide a comprehensive framework of measures that countries should implement to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing. These standards assist institutions such as the FIA in improving financial intelligence, information sharing, risk-based supervision, and cooperation with domestic and international partners.

The partnership is also important because FATF promotes effective implementation, not only the existence of laws and policies. Its mutual evaluation and follow-up processes help countries assess whether their AML/CFT/CPF systems are working effectively in practice. This supports continuous improvement and helps Botswana strengthen its national response to financial crime risks.

For the FIA, FATF’s work provides an essential international reference point. It helps guide policy development, operational coordination, stakeholder engagement, and the implementation of measures that protect the integrity of Botswana’s financial system. The partnership also supports Botswana’s participation in the global fight against illicit finance.

As a global standard setter, FATF plays a central role in promoting cooperation among countries, financial intelligence units, supervisors, law enforcement agencies, and other competent authorities. The FIA’s alignment with FATF standards reflects Botswana’s commitment to transparency, accountability, and a strong financial crime prevention framework.

The Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units is a key international partner of the Financial Intelligence Agency. It is a global network of Financial Intelligence Units that supports secure cooperation, information exchange, and sharing of expertise in the fight against money laundering, terrorism financing, and related financial crimes.

The FIA’s partnership with the Egmont Group strengthens Botswana’s ability to cooperate with Financial Intelligence Units in other jurisdictions. Financial crime often crosses borders, and this relationship helps ensure that relevant financial intelligence can be exchanged securely and lawfully with international counterparts when required.

Through the Egmont Group, the FIA benefits from access to global FIU cooperation mechanisms, technical knowledge, operational guidance, and peer learning. The partnership also supports capacity building through training, best-practice sharing, and participation in international discussions on emerging financial crime risks.

The Egmont Group provides a platform for FIUs to improve cooperation and support their respective governments in combating money laundering, terrorism financing, and other financial crimes. Its Secretariat provides strategic, technical, and administrative support to the Group and is based in Canada.

This partnership is important to the FIA’s role in protecting the integrity of Botswana’s financial system. It supports timely international cooperation, strengthens intelligence development, and enhances the country’s contribution to the global fight against illicit finance.

As an international partner, the Egmont Group reflects the importance of trusted cross-border cooperation between FIUs. The FIA’s engagement with the Egmont Group helps Botswana remain connected to global AML/CFT/CPF standards, practices, and secure information-sharing networks.

The Eastern and Southern Africa Anti-Money Laundering Group, commonly known as ESAAMLG, is an important regional partner of the Financial Intelligence Agency. ESAAMLG supports member countries in strengthening systems for anti-money laundering, counter-terrorism financing, and counter-proliferation financing. It is recognised by the Financial Action Task Force as a FATF-Style Regional Body for Eastern and Southern Africa.

The FIA’s partnership with ESAAMLG supports Botswana’s commitment to meeting international standards for combating money laundering, terrorism financing, and proliferation financing. Through ESAAMLG, Botswana participates in regional cooperation, mutual evaluations, technical discussions, training, typology studies, and follow-up processes that help improve national AML/CFT/CPF frameworks.

This partnership assists the FIA in aligning its work with regional and international best practice. It provides opportunities for knowledge sharing, capacity building, peer learning, and coordinated responses to emerging financial crime risks. ESAAMLG also plays a key role in assessing member countries’ compliance with FATF Recommendations and supporting improvements where gaps are identified.

The relationship between the FIA and ESAAMLG strengthens Botswana’s ability to protect the integrity of its financial system. By participating in ESAAMLG activities, the FIA contributes to regional efforts to detect, prevent, and disrupt financial crime, while also benefiting from shared expertise across Eastern and Southern Africa.

As a regional partner, ESAAMLG is central to Botswana’s continued development of a strong, effective, and internationally aligned AML/CFT/CPF regime. The partnership reflects the importance of cooperation beyond national borders, especially where financial crime networks operate across jurisdictions.