Last Tuesday, 9th December, all the world celebrated the fight against corruption. This post is a tribute for everyone who help in this fight: journalists, judges, lawyers, whistleblowers, activists, public servants that work directly with this crime and anyone else that could have done something to help this fight. This post is a summary of four articles. The first with the title above was published at http://www.anticorruptionday.org/actagainstcorruption/en/about-the-campaign/ed-message-on-anti-corruption-day-2014.html. The second with the title of, "Time to act together to end corruption." It was published at http://www.transparency.org/news/feature/act_together_to_end_corruption. The third http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter/articles/2013/09/25/the-role-for-anti-corruption-and-governance-looking-to-2015-and-beyond-http. The fourth was published at http://www.un.org/en/events/anticorruptionday/
Corruption reaches into boardrooms, governments, law enforcement, education, healthcare and sport, among many other areas. No country, region or field of endeavour escapes the pull of this crime. Corruption drives up prices, erodes business credibility, diverts public funds and undermines equity and fairness across societies. It may be seen in missing tracts of forest, lost classrooms, absent hospitals and building effective institutions. In the face of these challenges, our global resistance to corruption hinges on every country ratifying and implementing the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), as well as entering into its peer review mechanism. This tool funded on the mutual trust of nations working side by side has proven to be a transformational experience for participating countries and is delivering tangible results. These range from meaningful reform to the strengthening of anti-corruption institutions all over the world. But other also have a nurturing role. Business, and business groups need to speak out, and in doing so, acknowledge that a company's brand is driven by good practices, ethical behaviour and sound procurement rules. Civil society is also working to ensure that corruption is confronted. This work is crucial and UNODC will continue to work closely with civil society in the future. On the International Day against Corruption, I welcome the efforts against corruption undertaken by governments, UN agencies, the private and public sector, civil society and the media.
Corruption is one of the most serious challenges of our time. Nearly all of us are victims of corruption: whether we are poor and can not afford to pay a bribe for basic services or taxpayers whose hard-earned money gets misappropriated. Victims of conflict, voters whose democratic rights are stolen or factory workers who lose their lives working in unsafe building all suffer from the same scourge. Nothing feeds corruption more than apathy, or the belief nothing can be done and it is "just the way life is". This portrayal of corruption allows impunity to flourish, it allows the corrupt to get away with it. But not for long. There is compelling and overwhelming evidence that people throughout the world have had enough and are willing to take action to stop corruption. Two in three people believe that ordinary people can make a difference in the fight against corruption and more than 90% of people would be willing to be engaged in the fight against corruption. When people act, then change will happen. The Declaration Against Corruption seeks to inspire, nothing more or less than a global wave of people standing up to corruption and demanding dignity for themselves and others.
Making anti-corruption policies part of daily life and create more accountability at national and international levels were at the core of a global panel discussion held in the 68th U.N. General Assembly. The panel gathered to debate the role of anti-corruption and governance in the post-2015 Development Agenda and launch the anti-corruption web-portal WWW.ANTI-CORRUPTION.ORG, a UN agency tool led by UNDP to contribute to the discussion on the role of transparency and accountability in effective service delivery. "UNDP has learned from experience that works best are specific anti-corruption measures integrated into basic service delivery systems coupled with an increase in the engagement of civil society," said Rebeca Grynspan, UNDP Administrator. She adds, "development goals to be achieved, not only economies need to grow, but revenues must be invested back in better services and improvements for all people." The panel also discuss the correlation between corrupt practices and key development indicators such as gender equality, youth empowerment, universal access to water, health and education. There is a growing consensus among member states representatives on the importance of integrating transparency and accountability measures in development policies as a way to prevent waste of crucial resources that are aimed at financing development. "Opening data is key to combating corruption. We are opening our data and showing where corruption is, and sharing lessons learned on what we can do to improve," said Heiki Holmas, Minister of Norway. "It is important to focus more on building strong institutions rather than new frameworks for anti-corruption," said Ngozi Okonjo, Minister of Nigeria.
Corruption is a complex social, political and economic phenomenon. Corruption undermines democratic institutions and slow economic development. Corruption attacks the foundation of democratic institutions by distorting electoral processes, perverting the rule of law and creating bureaucratic quagmires whose only reason for existing is the soliciting of bribes.
