Kuwait approves decision to enhance beneficial owner identification

The Conference of the Parties to the Arab Convention against Corruption, in its sixth session held in Doha, adopted a resolution submitted by the State of Kuwait and prepared by the General Authority for Anti-Corruption (Nizaha) concerning the enhancement of beneficial owner transparency. This marks the first resolution initiative prepared and submitted by Nizaha on behalf of the State of Kuwait to the Conference.

In a statement, Nizaha said the resolution aims to enhance the capacity of states to identify individuals who own or effectively control companies, and to limit the use of such entities to conceal proceeds derived from corruption crimes. This will assist competent authorities in uncovering, tracing, and recovering such funds while protecting legitimate business activities.

The statement quoted Dr. Rana Al-Fares, Head of Nizaha, as stating that the adoption of the Kuwaiti resolution represents an important step toward strengthening Arab cooperation in countering methods used to conceal the identity of beneficial owners and obscure the proceeds of corruption crimes. Al-Fares noted that “knowing who owns or effectively controls companies enhances transparency, limits the potential use of such entities to hide proceeds from corruption crimes, and helps competent authorities uncover, trace, and recover those funds.”

She added that Kuwait, in preparing the resolution, sought to strike a balance between enhancing integrity and transparency on one hand, and protecting legitimate business activities and economic interests on the other, in line with the Arab and United Nations conventions against corruption and the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

Al-Fares pointed out that this resolution, being the first initiative prepared and submitted by Nizaha on behalf of the State of Kuwait, reflects the Authority’s orientation toward enhancing Kuwait’s contribution to developing joint Arab initiatives in the field of corruption prevention and control, and shifting from participating in regional efforts to taking the initiative and proposing measures that support joint Arab action.

She explained that the resolution calls on the Parties to develop their national legislation and regulations to address methods of concealing true ownership, enhance information exchange and cooperation among themselves, and leverage modern technologies and artificial intelligence in collecting and analyzing data that helps identify beneficial owners.

Al-Fares clarified that the resolution extends Kuwaiti efforts that began at the Gulf level, where Nizaha previously prepared the “Guide to Practices and Measures for Identifying Beneficial Owners in the Gulf Cooperation Council States,” which was adopted by the Ministerial Committee on Anti-Corruption in the GCC states, before these efforts were elevated to the Arab level today.

She expressed Kuwait’s appreciation to its sister state, Qatar, for its excellent hosting and organization, and to the Parties for their support of the resolution, reaffirming the expectation that its outcomes will be translated into practical steps that enhance integrity, transparency, and Arab cooperation in combating corruption.