Regulatory oversight of the private military and security sector is failing to keep pace with the rapidly growing and diversifying industry, leading to heightened global risks of fraud, corruption and violence. Better regulation of the industry is urgently needed. This three-page fact sheet defines Private Military and Security Companies and outlines the required response.
The risks and impacts of inappropriate influence in the policy-making process, in which individuals or organisations try to persuade in favour of, or force their own agenda, are particularly significant in the defence and security sector. In this context, high levels of secrecy and complexity, combined with close relations between government, private experts, and the […]
This report examines systemic vulnerabilities and influence pathways through which the Italian defence industry may exert undue influence on the national defence and security agenda. Compiled by Transparency International Defence and Security with the support of the Italian Coalition for Civil Liberties and Rights (CILD) and Osservatorio Mil€x, this report forms a case study as […]
Questo rapporto esamina le vulnerabilità sistemiche e i possibili percorsi attraverso i quali l’industria italiana della difesa può esercitare un’influenza indebita sull’agenda politica nazionale in materia di difesa e sicurezza. I governi e l’industria dovrebbero mitigare il rischio di influenza indebita, rafforzando l’integrità delle istituzioni e dei processi politici e migliorando il controllo e la […]
Pendant des décennies, la stabilité en Afrique de l’Ouest a été grandement perturbée par les conflits internes, souvent financés par la vente illégale d’armes ou l’extraction illicite de ressources naturelles. Que ce soit au Liberia, en Sierra Leone et en Côte d’Ivoire ou au Mali, au Burkina Faso et au Nigeria, la corruption a souvent […]
This report argues that strengthening accountability and governance of groups including the armed forces, law enforcement and intelligence services – not just providing training and new equipment - is a crucial but often neglected component to successful security sector reform in West Africa.
This report examines systemic vulnerabilities and influence pathways through which the German defence industry may exert inappropriate influence on the national defence and security agenda. Governments and industry should mitigate the risk of undue influence by strengthening the integrity of institutions and policy processes and improving the control and transparency of influence in the defence […]
Transparency Deutschland und Transparency International Defence & Security haben im Rahmen einer gemeinsamen Studie den Umfang möglicher Einflussnahme durch die deutsche Rüstungsindustrie auf die Sicherheits- und Verteidigungspolitik untersucht. Das Ergebnis: Die Möglichkeit der Einflussnahme durch die Wirtschaft besteht, trotz der im Grundgesetz geforderten strikten Kontrolle von Politik und Beschaffung in diesem Bereich durch Parlament und Regierung. In […]
The COVID-19 crisis has significantly affected the role and expectations of defence and security forces, and shifted the trajectory of key global defence and security trends while simultaneously contributing to the emergence of new trends within the defence and security sector. Transparency International’s Defence and Security programme has worked to identify these trends as they […]
The “Global Standards” initiative envisages the creation of an international political declaration, which would universalise norms around what it means to be a responsible power in the 21st Century, including commitments to basic transparency and accountability in one of the most opaque and closed-off sectors in the world. Such a global consensus would set a […]
This article contributes to the debate on conceptualizing corruption by suggesting that sector-specific typologies of corruption risks are useful heuristics that encourage understanding of corruption without attempting to define it in a way that is inherently contestable or inappropriately succinct. To develop this position, this article reflects on the difficulties in trying to define corruption […]
Corruption risk in defence and security establishments is a key concern for defence officials and senior military officers, as corruption wastes scarce resources, reduces operational effectiveness and reduces public trust in the armed forces and security services. Part of the solution to these risks is clear guidance on the behaviour expected of senior officers and […]