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21/02/2005 - A transparent and corruption-free environment is essential if local and foreign firms are to provide the investment needed to develop African economies. With this in mind, African governments and international bodies are holding a conference on Alliances for Integrity- Government and Business Roles in Enhancing African Standards of Living at the Economic Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on 7-8 March 2005.
Organised by the OECD in co-operation with the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the UN Global Compact and Transparency International, the conference will focus on ways in which African governments and investors can conduct business in an environment free of bribery, extortion and other forms of corruption.
Representatives from business, trade unions, civil society, and international and regional organisations will discuss the links between integrity and investment and the roles of both governments and investors in creating an environment conducive to investment and hence to economic and social development.
Journalists are welcome to attend the plenary sessions of the meeting. A closing news conference will be held at 16.00 p.m. on Tuesday 8 March. Participants will include: Transparency International (TI) Chairman Peter Eigen and TI Regional Director for Africa and the Middle East Muzong Kodi, Peter Ondeng of NEPAD, Denise O'Brien of the UN Global Compact and Anna-Maj Hultgaard and Rainer Geiger for the OECD.
A growing number of international instruments address the issues of integrity underlying efforts to promote development in Africa. The Conference will examine the impact these instruments have on companies doing business in Africa and discuss with business leaders how they can be improved. Representatives of companies including Cadbury, SAP and De Beers that have signed up to the UN’s Global Compact’s anti-corruption principle will report on their experiences within their operations and with governments, other companies and non-governmental organisations in Africa.
To date, 32 African nations have signed the UN Convention against Corruption and South Africa has asked to accede to the OECD Convention against Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions. The African Union also has a Convention dealing with transparency and the fight against corruption. The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises contain detailed anti-corruption recommendations for companies, while in June 2004 the UN Global Compact added a 10th principle asking all its participants to work against corruption in all its forms. Transparency International’s no-bribes Integrity Pacts and Business Principles for Countering Bribery clarify roles for both the public and private sector in ending corruption.
To register for the conference or for more information, journalists are invited to contact Helen Fisher, OECD’s Media Relations Division (tel. [33] 1 45 24 80 97).
For further information please see www.oecd.org/daf/investment
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