IDLO Statement at the 3rd Meeting of the G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group
Rome, Italy
Delivered by Liliana De Marco, Director of External Relations and Partnerships, IDLO
It is a pleasure to take the floor on behalf of the International Development Law Organization (IDLO).
I would like to thank the Co-Chairs for this opportunity to brief you on IDLO’s work on anti-corruption and to congratulate Mr. Polcini on his first ACWG session as Co-Chair.
As the only global intergovernmental organization exclusively dedicated to promoting peace and sustainable development through the rule of law, IDLO supports countries’ efforts to tackle corruption and improve accountability. These efforts are essential to achieving SDG 16, as well as all other SDGs.
IDLO’s global anti-corruption portfolio has expanded in recent months. Much of our work is grounded in strong partnerships with national and international actors, many of whom are represented here today.
The UNGASS Political Declaration provides an opportunity to redouble our collective efforts on anti-corruption. In this light, IDLO is strengthening its work in a number of key areas, particularly asset recovery, ethics and integrity standards for public officials, and combating Illicit financial flows and networks.
Beginning with asset recovery, the Declaration acknowledged that asset recovery and cooperation among states are persistent global challenges.
In this area, IDLO is working, for example, in Armenia, to provide training and technical support to the Anti-Corruption Committee and Department for Confiscation of Property of Illicit Origin at the Prosecutor-General’s Office. This includes the drafting of Standard Operating Procedures and providing strategic advisory support to the Deputy Prosecutor-General.
The Declaration also cites the importance of developing ethics and integrity standards, emphasizing that an independent and transparent judicial system that is in line with the principles of judicial ethics can play a crucial role in preventing and combating corruption. The UN Secretary-General’s recently released report, Our Common Agenda, also highlights the importance of ‘building trust’ with institutions and forging a new vision of the rule of law as part of a renewed social contract. Countering corruption in public institutions, particularly through ethics and integrity standards, will be essential to this.
In this area, IDLO is supporting national partners. For example, in Ukraine, IDLO was the first and only international partner that helped the Office of the Prosecutor-General to design and launch a re-attestation of existing prosecutors.
In addition, IDLO has been providing technical assistance leading to the establishment of the Ukraine High Anti-Corruption Court. We are also preparing to make a tangible contribution to the reform of the Judicial Administration of Ukraine, in accordance with legislation that was recently passed to this effect.
We are applying some of the lessons learned from our work in Ukraine in Armenia, helping to advance the establishment of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Court and the Anti-Corruption Committee.
In Mongolia, we recently launched a project to provide technical support to the Independent Authority Against Corruption. This work is likewise aligned with the UNGASS commitment to support the capacity and independence of specialized anti-corruption authorities.
Two other global anti-corruption priorities emphasized in the UNGASS Declaration are the combating of Illicit financial flows derived from corruption and the detection and disruption of networks that act as facilitators or safe havens.
In Somalia, IDLO supports the Somali Financial Reporting Center by bolstering its capacity to detect and counter illicit financial flows.
These are just some examples of how IDLO’s work underpins the vision of the UNGASS Declaration. IDLO is drawing on its operational experience tackling corruption to develop policies, guidance and recommendations that may benefit the global anti-corruption effort. One example is our recently initiated study on Promising Practices in Anti-Corruption, which is aimed at informing policymakers at the national and global levels with innovative and evidence-based practices.
We remain committed to continuing and expanding these efforts and stand ready to provide technical assistance to national partners, in collaboration with key global stakeholders, and in line with the UNGASS spirit of cooperation.
In this regard, I would like to close by noting that on 11 October at the European Fundamental Rights Forum, IDLO and the North-South Center of the Council of Europe will lead an event on youth championing a corruption-free Europe. We are honored that representatives from the OECD Working Group on Bribery and the European Commission Directorate-General for International Partnerships will speak at the event. We hope you will join us.
Thank you for this opportunity. We look forward to working more closely with our partners, including the members of this G20 Working Group, going forward.
