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Ahmed Mokdad

Ahmed Mokdad is an associate in the firm's compliance and investigations practice in Africa. As a seasoned investigative specialist with deep experience representing clients across various sectors, he regularly assists clients across the continent navigate and mitigate a broad spectrum of regulatory and compliance risks and challenges.

Adding to his on the ground investigative, regulatory and compliance advisory experience, Mr. Mokdad has also extensively advised on litigious matters and financial transactions. Mr. Mokdad has been involved in several high profile litigious matters and international arbitrations relating to, amongst others, tax disputes and exchange control violations, corporate and commercial disputes, public procurement and white collar crime. He regularly performs risk and compliance program assessments, third-party risk due diligence, advising on pre-acquisition diligence and post-acquisition integration.

In Episode 12 of our Inside Privacy Audiocast, together with special guest Advocate Pansy Tlakula, Chairperson of the Information Regulator of South Africa, we discussed the Information Regulator’s mandate, and the implementation of data protection legislation in South Africa.  Now, with less than a month to go before South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (“POPIA”) is set to go into full effect on July 1, 2021, it is critical for organizations operating in South Africa to ensure that they are ready if and when the Information Regulator comes knocking.

It is only when organizations start their POPIA journey that they realize just how wide the POPIA net is cast, and that very few businesses fall outside of its reach.  The road to POPIA compliance should be viewed as a marathon, and not a sprint.  While implementing and maintaining an effective POPIA compliance program will take continued effort and resources well beyond the July 1, 2021 go-live date, here we outline five steps to which companies subject to POPIA should give their attention in the short term.
Continue Reading Final Countdown to POPIA Compliance – Five Critical Steps to Take Before July 1st, 2021

On June 22, 2020, the South African President announced that certain provisions of POPIA would take effect on July 1, provisions which most regard as essential to the statute, such as those imposing conditions on the lawful processing of personal information, procedures for handling complaints, and general enforcement provisions. Only days later, the South African

Commencement of the AfCFTA. The landmark African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is slated to go into force on July 1, 2020. When fully implemented, the trade agreement will eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers, and substantially increase intra-regional trade to volumes worth over $3.3 trillion. Twenty-nine countries have deposited their instruments of ratification, and Eritrea

Companies today face increasingly complex regulatory frameworks globally and intense levels of corporate scrutiny from government enforcement agencies around the world. As government agencies embrace sophisticated crime-busting technology and the world shrinks through greater inter-agency cooperation, there are more ways than ever for governments to identify misconduct and hold companies to account through criminal prosecutions