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GOPAC to Present at the 15th International Anti-Corruption Conference |
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GOPAC invites all our members and legislators from around the world to join us in Brazil, from 7-10 November 2012, for the 15th International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC). GOPAC will be hosting a panel session at the conference entitled Power to the People: Parliamentarians, Citizens, and Anti-Corruption, to lead a dialogue to help legislators and civil society organizations work together in the fight against corruption.
Parliamentarians are elected by the people to serve the people and are accountable to the people. No one, therefore, is better placed to act as a bridge between civil society and government, and to ensure that the voice of the people is reflected through legislation that promotes transparency and good governance.
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Our panellists will share experiences from different parts of the world – including the Arab Region, Latin America, and the emerging state of Timor Leste – and will enable legislators and civil society organizations to build bridges to help them work together, instead of at cross purposes, to serve the public interest.
Register for the 15th International Anti-Corruption Conference today at http://iacconference.org/ and please take a moment to notify GOPAC GTF Advisor Vicki Baxter (vicki.baxter@gopacnetwork.org) that you will be attending.
The IACC is the world premier forum that brings together civil society, heads of state, and the private sector to tackle the increasingly sophisticated challenges posed by corruption. The IACC takes place every two years in a different region of the world, and attracts up to 1500 participants from over 135 countries.
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Legislative Experts Gather to Strengthen Oversight |
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GOPAC, the World Bank Institute (WBI), and the European Parliament’s Office for the Promotion of Parliamentary Democracy (OPPD) hosted an international study group on oversight and accountability in presidential and semi-presidential systems, in Brussels, Belgium. The event brought together current and former legislators with expertise in legislative oversight, and provided participants with peer-to-peer learning opportunities.
Throughout the four-day event, participants shared ideas and support in the fight against corruption.
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The study group was part of a larger collaboration between GOPAC and WBI to further legislators’ capacity to enforce government oversight. The collaboration will produce a number of publications on oversight in both parliamentary and presidential systems. The project was designed to address the challenge of oversight in presidential systems, an issue GOPAC members raised at the Fourth Global Conference of Parliamentarians Against Corruption in March 2011.
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Building GOPAC Global Task Forces for the Fight Against Corruption |
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GOPAC’s Global Task Forces (GTFs) are our key worldwide bodies to help our members introduce legislative and oversight changes in national parliaments to control corruption, promote good governance, and hold the executive accountable to the people. Each GTF is made up of a regionally balanced group of legislators and former-legislators, who champion specific critical issues. GOPAC currently has four fully active GTFs, on Parliamentary Oversight, Parliamentary Ethics and Conduct, Anti-Money Laundering, and the United Nations Convention Against Corruption. This fall, GOPAC is building on these and introducing a GTF on Resource Revenue Transparency and on the Participation of Society in the fight against corruption.
Resource Revenue Transparency Global Task Force
Too often, the exploitation of natural resources and corruption become intertwined. GTF-RRT will push for changes to international accounting standards to require the publication in the Public Accounts, as a separate line item, of all revenues received from resource extraction activities. The GTF will work with key partner organizations in this field, such as the Extractive Industries Trans-
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parency Initiative, Revenue Watch Institute, Publish What You Pay, Transparency International, and the World Bank.
Participation of Society Global Task Force
Citizen engagement is critical to the success of the fight against corruption. The participation of society affords those who are affected by a decision to be involved in the decision making process itself. Corruption declines in direct proportion to the increase in the public demand for integrity. Established initiatives that support the participation of society in the fight against corruption include Access to Information legislation and sound Parliamentary committee practices – open meetings, televised hearings, and the inviting of witnesses. Innovative anti-corruption initiatives include the Kenyan experience of citizens becoming directly involved in combatting corruption in constituency development funds, and the Indian experience of the "zero rupee note".
For more information on or to participate in one of GOPAC’s GTFs, please contact the Global Secretariat.
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GOPAC Partners with the UNCAC Coalition |
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This summer, GOPAC formalised our partnership with the UNCAC Coalition, a global network of civil society organisations committed to promoting the ratification, implementation, and enforcement of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC). GOPAC and the UNCAC Coalition signed our official agreement in June and through it, have granted each other Special Observer status to their respective organizations.
This unique partnership will bring together civil society and parliamentarians to form a common front in the fight against corruption.
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It provides a significant opportunity for knowledge sharing and the fostering of good government around the world. Both organizations are advocating common positions relating to the UNCAC, facilitating the exchange of information among members, and promoting joint civil society and parliamentarian efforts in support of the UNCAC.
The UNCAC Coalition is a network of over 310 national and international civil society organisations in over 100 countries. Since 2006, it has worked to advance the ratification, implementation, enforcement and monitoring of UNCAC, and ensure that transparency and civil society participation are integral in these processes.
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GOPAC CEO Spreads GOPAC’s Mission to South Africa |
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GOPAC CEO John Williams was welcomed in Cape Town, South Africa in September at a meeting of the Parliamentary Institute of South Africa. Mr. Williams addressed South African legislators, businesses leaders, and civil society on GOPAC’s international anti-corruption and good governance work. His inspiring speech excited much enthusiasm from the audience, who responded with a commitment to form a national South African partnership with GOPAC.
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The meeting participants identified corruption as a serious issue in South Africa, and agreed that they must take action urgently. Together Mr. Williams looks forward to supporting legislators in South Africa in their efforts.
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