Back to 17th IACC conference in Panama

The High Authority participated in a panel during the 17th IACC, organised from 1st to 4th December in Panama City.

In 2014, the Public Governance Committee started revising the 1998 OECD Recommendation on Improving Ethical Behavior in the Public Service. This recommendation was the first official instrument to provide international guidelines for the prevention of corruption and the promotion of integrity.

The revision performed by the Working Party of Senior Public Integrity Officials (SPIO) relies on two core concepts: « control » of public officials, elected and non-elected, as well as that of « exemplarity » of the highest-ranking public officials. Both concepts are also at the core of the Bill of October 11, 2013 in France.

The working party held discussions around the optimal development of public policies focusing on integrity. It emphasized the need for a vertical coordination through a governance model, which considers the diversity of public sector actors at both local and national levels. This coordination should be linked to horizontal coordination between different sectors and institutions concerned. The High Authority has contributed to these debates, particularly on the role of autonomous or independent supervisory bodies in the implementation of integrity promoting mechanisms in the public sector. In general, the development of these tools should accompany the commitments to promote a culture of ethics through training and codes of conduct adapted to the categories of public officials concerned.

As a follow-up to these negotiations, the OECD has proposed a panel at the 17th International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC). The topic of this year’s conference was “Time for Justice, Equity, Security and Trust”. This panel brought together the representatives of independent public sector audit institutions, the High Authority and the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission of South Korea, the German Development Agency, GIZ, and a civil society organization, with the participation of the Chairman of the Transparency International Business Advisory Committee, who followed the discussions initiated by the OECD and who illustrated the mechanisms of promoting integrity.

The High Authority, represented by its Secretary General, Guillaume Valette-Valla, participated in the panel that took place on December 3. The IACC brings together politicians, private and civil society actors, and like other OECD forums, it is a place for sharing experiences and exchanges on innovative solutions to fight against corruption. The High Authority participated in the panel that focused on one of the aspects developed in the revision of the 1998 Recommendation: stakeholder dialogue and the strengthening of international cooperation in the fight against corruption and the promotion of integrity.

Indeed, the efforts leading to a new recommendation for 2017 cannot be complete without the dissemination of good practices and guidelines presented and developed within international organizations and other fora for such exchanges. The different stakeholders presented new measures that their institutions were implementing to reinforce integrity in their sector or throughout their projects. For example, GIZ has ensured training and ethical advice to agents both in their relations within the organization and in the implementing of projects entrusted to the organization.

The following discussions with the audience focused on the necessity of permanent adaption of the implemented measures to promote and anchor integrity in the society.