On International Anti-Corruption Day OSCE hosts event on beneficial ownership and public procurement processes, key to preventing corrupt practices
The importance of political support as a key step in introducing effective legal and policy frameworks to strengthen open data initiatives that lead to societies that are more transparent was discussed at an OSCE-organized webinar on International Anti-Corruption Day on 9 December 2020.
Around 100 representatives from governments, OSCE institutions, civil society organizations and academia discussed success stories in beneficial ownership and public procurement as well as ways to build and maintain political support for anti-corruption reforms.
The Chair of the OSCE Permanent Council and Permanent Representative of Albania to the OSCE, Ambassador Igli Hasani opened the event by referencing the 2020 Ministerial Council Decision on “Preventing and Combatting Corruption through Digitalization and Increased Transparency” adopted on 4 December 2020.
“This is truly a great achievement, which enriches the OSCE’s set of commitments in this field. It also responds to the emerging trends of development of technologies in promoting good governance, transparency and accountability. This is the first Ministerial Council Decision elaborating on the links between anti-corruption and digitalization,” said Hasani. Professor Paola Severino, Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office on Combating Corruption echoed his message.
Vuk Žugić, Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities stated during the opening session that: “Efficient, accessible, accountable, and transparent public service delivery is a key component in building a functioning public sector, and this is particularly important when we talk about procurement procedures.”
Guest speakers from Slovakia, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, the United States and Georgia focused on how to achieve political support in combating corruption. They provided an overview of the key role that transparent beneficial ownership information plays and the importance of open and efficient public procurement processes in enhancing public and private sector transparency and accountability.
Irene Charalambides, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Special Representative on Fighting Corruption, said: “It is only through strong political will that we can effectively fight corruption at all levels. Without political will, anti-corruption laws will remain empty shells and anti-corruption authorities will feel abandoned.”
Speakers identified transparent processes and access to well-analyzed data as essential for fighting corruption. Emphasizing the importance of beneficial ownership portals, Drago Kos, Chair of the OECD’s Working Group on Bribery in International Business Transactions said: “Access to data on beneficial ownership is crucial in our mutual fight against corruption on the international, national and local level.”
This is the third webinar in a series of capacity-building seminars organized by the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities in the framework of the extra-budgetary project “Promoting Good Governance and Enhancing Anti-Corruption Efforts in the OSCE Area through the Use of Open Data and New Digital Technologies”. The government of Germany and the United States Department of State support the initiative.