Peru is taking important steps toward fighting corruption and fostering greater transparency and exchange of information by completing the necessary steps to become a Party to the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions (Anti-Bribery Convention) and the multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters.
OECD Anti-Bribery Convention
The OECD announced today that Peru will become the 44th Party to the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention on 27 July 2018, 60 days after the deposit of its instrument of accession.
Peru's Minister of Economy and Finance, David Tuesta, deposited today the country’s instrument to accede to the Anti-Bribery Convention with OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría, during a ceremony in Paris.
"We welcome Peru as the 44th Party, and 7th Latin American country, to join the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention," said Mr. Gurría. "By joining the Convention, Peru sends a clear signal that is determined to playing a key role in the collective fight against cross-border bribery. This is another example of both Peru’s commitment to closer ties with the OECD, as well as its ability to adopt legal instruments in support of a fair and sustainable approach to globalisation."
On 27 September 2016, the OECD invited Peru to join the OECD Working Group on Bribery and to take the necessary steps to accede to the Convention. Peru will now undergo systematic reviews on the implementation of its anti-bribery laws.
The OECD Anti-Bribery Convention, which entered into force in 1999, prohibits the bribery of foreign public officials in international business transactions. Through country monitoring and extensive peer-led follow-up, the Convention seeks to ensure that the fight against bribery is effective, thus creating a level playing field for fair competition.
The 35 OECD member countries plus Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Colombia, Costa Rica, Lithuania, the Russian Federation, and South Africa are presently Parties to the Convention.
Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters
During the same ceremony, Minister Tuesta also deposited Peru's instrument of accession for the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters. With 119 countries and jurisdictions participating in the Convention, it is the world’s leading instrument for boosting transparency and combating cross-border tax evasion. The Convention will enter into force for Peru on 1 September 2018.
The Convention is the key instrument for swift implementation of the Standard for Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information in Tax Matters. The Standard - developed by the OECD and G20 countries – will enable more than 100 jurisdictions to automatically exchange offshore financial account information from September 2018 onwards. It is also a cornerstone for the implementation of the automatic exchange of Country-by-Country reports on the activities of multinational enterprises, under the OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Project, and is a powerful tool in the fight against illicit financial flows.
Peru’s accession to the Anti-Bribery Convention and multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters is part of the country’s wider and continuing engagement with the OECD. This enhanced engagement, which has accelerated in the context of the OECD-Peru Country Programme, has resulted in a significant increase of Peru’s participation in the Organisation’s bodies and the adoption of OECD instruments.
For further information, journalists are invited to contact the OECD Media Office.