Category: Conflict & Insecurity
Increase transparency in the security sector to defeat corruption.
18th May, Abuja – An opaque and secretive security sector will jeopardize President Buhari’s ambitious anti-corruption drive and is derailing the fight against Boko Haram, according to a new report by Transparency International. (more…)
The world’s major arms exporters have a conflicted approach when it comes to dealing with what are effectively kleptocratic governments. (more…)
25th April 2017, London – New bi-partisan legislation to treat international corruption as a national security threat is a vital development following the February repeal of Section 1504 of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act.
The Combating Global Corruption Act of 2017, introduced by US Senators Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and David Perdue (R-Ga.) with support from Feinstein, Rubio, Blumenthal, Collins, Merkley, Booker, and Leahy requires the State Department publish an annual report on the state of corruption worldwide. It provides that national anti-corruption programs be ranked according to a three-tiered ranking system and, crucially, requires that US agencies (Department of State, Department of Defense, USAID) pursue specific transparency and accountability measures where national efforts are considered insufficient.
Katherine Dixon, Director Transparency Defence and Security, said:
“The link between corruption and development is simple: corrupt leaders that siphon state funds and resources away from vulnerable populations bring about weak states and public unrest, creating fertile ground for terrorists and organised crime.”
“The February repeal of Section 1504 was a step back for US anti-corruption efforts. But, with the Combatting Global Corruption Act, we have the chance to make some big moves forward. In evaluating how seriously countries take corruption on their home turf, the US has raised the spectre of global corruption and elevated it on the foreign policy agenda.”
TI added that the US must set the gold standard at home if it is to fight corruption elsewhere.
Contact:
Dominic Kavakeb
0044 20 3096 7695
0044 796 456 0340
dominic.kavakeb@transparency.org.uk
Without reducing the corruption that plagues the country’s government, terrorism will be impossible to defeat. (more…)
21st February 2017, London – Western governments that ignore corruption are failing to address the root causes of violent extremist movements, such as ISIS, according to new research by Transparency International Defence and Security (TI-DS). (more…)
London, 31st January 2017 – An attempt by two Republican legislators to repeal a vital section of the US safeguards against corruption threatens to seriously undermine national security, according to Transparency International. (more…)
8th November 2016, London – India must put in place strong safeguards to ensure effective anti-corruption mechanisms are built into any coming defence deals between the UK and India, according to Transparency International Defence and Security (TI-DSP).
During Prime Minister Theresa May’s visit to India it was announced that “the UK and India are committed to further strengthening their strategic partnership in defence.” India is the largest importer of arms in the world but scored a ‘D’ in TI-DSP’s 2015 Defence Corruption Index, meaning vast sums of vital public funding is at a high risk of corruption.
India must ensure that the new blacklisting policy remains a robust sanction while allowing India to procure the technology that meets its security needs. Blacklisting is a vital tool sending a strong message to Indian and international suppliers that corruption will not be tolerated, and protects India’s public funds from misuse. The new policy should replace mandatory minimum penalties with a debarment system that weighs mitigating factors, and allows for shorter sentences in the event of strong remediation actions taken by the company.
Katherine Dixon, Director Transparency International Defence and Security, said:
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“As India is one of the largest defence markets in the world, the UK Government is naturally extremely keen to cultivate deals. But unless India has in place strong anti-corruption mechanisms, public funds will continue to be at risk, while poor procurement practices contribute to military shortages and undermine public trust.”
“Recent allegations that a major British defence company paid bribes to win contracts only further underlines the risks that weak procurement systems are at serious risk of being exploited by unscrupulous suppliers or their agents.”
***ENDS***
Contact:
Dominic Kavakeb
Dominic.kavakeb@transparency.org.uk
020 3096 7695
0796 456 0340
Imaage: Crown Copyright
We know that corruption is a threat to international security. Now we need to work out how to address it.
Corruption threatens international security, destroying the legitimacy and effectiveness of governments and the defence and security sector, hindering economic development, and providing a powerful call to arms for violent extremist movements. Fortunately the issue is gaining recognition. NATO’s Building Integrity policy, adopted at the 2016 Warsaw summit, acknowledges that tackling corruption is a core task of the Alliance, including in collective defence, crisis management, and spreading security through cooperation with partners. Similarly, the 2016 Anti-Corruption Summit Communiqué commits nations to concrete action. (more…)
DECLARATION OF ACTION AFTER A ONE DAY SOUTHWEST FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSION TOWARDS STRENGTHENING ACCOUNTABILITY IN THE NIGERIA DEFENCE SECTOR ORGANIZED BY THE CIVIL SOCIETY LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY CENTRE (CISLAC) WITH SUPPORT FROM TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL DEFENCE AND SECURITY PROGRAM HELD IN THE CONFERENCE ROOM OF TAHIR GUEST PALACE, KANO, KANO STATE ON THE 18th DAY OF JULY, 2016
(more…)
Invasion of Iraq fuelled corruption and instability
6th July 2016, London – Transparency International Defence & Security Programme (TI-DSP) welcomes today the publication of the Chilcot Inquiry that is rightly damning about the failures in post-conflict planning of the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Stemming the outflows of cash is simply not enough.
By Leah Wawro, Programme Manager, Conflict & Insecurity and
Éléonore Vidal de la Blache, Project Manager – Africa, Conflict & Insecurity
Speaking with fellow anti-corruption activists in Nigeria at the UK’s anti-corruption summit last week, we hear the same thing we’ve heard many times before: ‘we can’t do this on our own, here in Nigeria.’
Last week protesters stormed the Green Zone in Iraq. In many ways, this was hardly news. Over the last decade, popular frustration with endemic government corruption has been sustained and febrile; corruption might reasonably be described as the most serious security threat the country faces.