New York, 2 May 2023 - “Corruption is both thriving on and fuelling the multiple crises we face today, undermining every aspect of sustainable development,” said the Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Ms. Ghada Waly, at a special meeting of the United Nations Economic and Social Council on “Unleashing the transformative power of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16: Improving governance and reducing corruption” on 2 May 2023.
Sustainable Development Goal 16 aims to “promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.” It is one of 17 goals adopted by all UN Member States to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which together provide “a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet.”
SDG 16, as Ms. Waly noted, is a key enabler of other goals – meaning that corruption’s “heavy toll” on societies, including poverty, inequality, and erosion of trust in government and the rule of law – poses a cross-cutting challenge to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda as a whole.
The toll of corruption
Ms. Waly added that corruption weakens national institutions, breeds inefficiencies, and deflects resources away from essential services such as healthcare and education. It intensifies the risk of conflict, violence, and even terrorism. It impedes crisis response and recovery efforts, while also facilitating trafficking in drugs, arms, and people, as well as crimes that affect the environment.
Moreover, “it is the poor, the marginalized and the vulnerable who suffer most from corruption. Women are disproportionately affected by certain forms.”
Fighting back
A key tool in stamping out corruption is the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC). As the only legally binding, universal anti-corruption instrument, Ms. Waly stated, the Convention bolsters international cooperation in tracking, investigating and prosecuting corruption, and recovering stolen assets.
As 2023 marks the 20th anniversary of UNCAC’s adoption, Ms. Waly urged parties to ramp up transparency and anti-corruption efforts, underscoring that UNODC remained ready to provide its support.
UNODC works to assist the 189 parties to UNCAC to implement their commitments. Examples of UNODC support include providing research, data collection, and analysis to help parties identify patterns and trends that can inform their anti-corruption policies. UNODC technical assistance last year, meanwhile, helped states to recover stolen assets; foster cooperation between anti-corruption agencies and supreme audit institutions; enhance cross-border cooperation to bring the corrupt to justice, and more.
UNODC is further working to create regional anti-corruption hubs to tailor support on the ground, with one already open in Mexico and two more set to launch shortly in Kenya and Colombia.
Ms. Waly ended her remarks by underscoring the importance of partnerships among the public sector, private sector, civil society, academia and media, noting how much UNODC valued its cooperation with each.
“We have the chance to create a better world if we work together to tackle corruption,” she said. “By promoting integrity, transparency and accountability, we can help rebuild the trust in government and the rule of law that is essential to SDG 16, and accelerate progress toward sustainable development.”To read more about the UN Convention against Corruption, click here.
